UC-NRLF 


skwS 

NHRB 


ISl  ,1151  IS 


,  iHfoinri 


GIFT   OF 
Deii^anin    Ida    Wheeler 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 

in  2007  with  funding  from 

Microsoft  Corporation 


http://www.archive.org/details/fouroldgreeksachOOhallrich 


A   GREEK  WOMAN  PLAYING  A   FLUTE 


'j&&&#&<j&&&&tr<j&<j<r£ 


X 

X 
X 

t> 

\ 


\ 


*>*>l*£*l*£**H*£*M>jl*im£*£*£> 


l3l  190 

H3 


GIFT 


Copyright,  igoiy 
By  Jennie  Hall. 


l/\ 


FROMTHE    % 

AUTHOR 


«*kafial 


AT  the  beginning,  let  me  make  a  thank-offering 
i\  to  Miss  Katharine  Lee  Bates,  of  Wellesley 
College,  for  careful  criticism  and  advice  that  has 
smoothed  many  rough  places  and  added  to  the  value 
of  this  book.  Then  let  me  pour  the  libation  of 
friendship  and  of  loving  gratitude  to  Miss  Irene 
Ingalls  Cleaves,  who  saw  these  stories  slowly  grow 
during  three  years  of  teaching,  and  who,  through  all 
that  time,  by  patient  help  and  clever  suggestion, 
aided  in  making  them  what  they  are. 

Jennie  Hall. 


A  -4    pyj    vv  ~~ 


t5] 


iTOETABLEOF, 

QNTENTSJ 


Vr&?^>?r?^tt&l*V&Wr>&  ^*'Wttj^\&^^V?-3$Wl^.F-*^J!W&:-?$* 


About  Greece  and  the  Greeks, n 

Achilles  and  the  War, 20 

Herakles  the  Wanderer, 73 

The  Merry  Dionysos, 133 

How  Alkestis  Was  Saved  (a  Greek  Play),     .     .171 

A  Vocabulary, 218 

Suggestions  to  Teachers, 219 

A  Bibliography, 222 


[7] 


4 'A  LIST  OF 

ILLUSTRATIONS 

A  Greek  Woman  Playing  a  Flute,  frontispiece,  tage 

A  Greek, 10 

Three  Greeks, 13 

A  Greek  Warrior, 15 

A  Greek  Ship, 17 

A  Greek  Vase, 18 

Achilles  and  the  Centaur  Hunting, 21 

A  Greek  King, 33 

A  Woman  with  a  Jewel-box, 36 

Women  Playing  on  Lyres, 46 

Fight  at  the  Ships, 53 

A  Greek  Chariot, 54 

Achilles  Chasing  the  Trojans, 62 

Hermes, 66 

Herakles, 72 

Zeus  in  Olympos, 91 

How  Herakles  Raised  the  Cup  of  Wine,    .     .     .  102 

A  Greek  Bowman, 105 

Herakles  and  His  Bow, 106 

Zeus  and  His  Eagle, 116 

As  Herakles  Appeared  After  His  Bath,     .     .     .  119 

Herakles  in  Olympos, 127 

People  Going  to  an  Altar, 128 

A  Chariot  Race  at  Olympia, 129 

Dionysos, 132 


A  List  of  Illustrations  g 

PAGE 

Head  of  Zeus, 133 

Pan, 136 

Head  of  Dionysos, 158 

Dionysos  in  Olympos, 159 

Procession  of  Gift-bearers, 162-163 

A  Flute  Player  in  the  Procession, 164 

Silenos, 167 

The  Muse  of  Tragedy, 170 

The  Theater  as  it  is  Now, .  174 

Chair  of  the  Priest  of  Dionysos, 176 

A  Greek  Actor, 182 

A  Flute  Player, 186 

A  Mask, 189 

A  Poet  Training  a  Chorus, 216 


A  GREEK 
Notice  the  lead  weights  in  the  corners  of  the  chlamys.      They  keep 
the  cloak  from  blowing-  about  in  the  wind.     A  hat  hangs  behind  the 
man's  shoulders. 


ABOUT  GREECE  AND  THE 
GREEKS 

GREECE  is  a  beautiful  country. 
Mountains  and  rivers  and  sea 
are  all  jumbled  together.  The 
farms  are  not  flat.  They  slope  down 
a  mountain-side  or  run  over  a  dozen 
little  rocky  hills,  and  everywhere  the 
sea  comes  up  into  the  land  so  that  the 
whole  country  smells  of  the  ocean. 

The  Greeks  liked  to  walk  among 
their  mountains  and  they  liked  to  sail 
on  their  sea.  The  climate  was  warm 
and  sunny,  and  the  people  would  not 
stay  in  the  house ;  so  they  were  strong, 
and  tall,  and  straight.  They  walked 
like  lions.  They  could  run,  they  could 
leap,  they  could  wrestle,  they  could 
swim.  Their  muscles  were  hard.  Their 
skin  was  smooth.  Their  clothes,  too, 
were  beautiful. 

"They  must  not  bind  our  muscles/' 
said  the  Greeks.    '  *  They  must  not  be  in 


12  Fdur^O'td  Greeks 

our  way  when  we  run.  Our  arms  must 
be  free  for  throwing." 

So  a  man  wore  a  loose  chiton  that 
had  no  sleeves  and  that  came  only  to 
his  knees.  It  was  white,  or  gray,  or  yel- 
low, and  was  belted  and  bloused  at  the 
waist.  Then  a  short  cape  of  some 
bright  color  was  flung  over  the  man's 
shoulders  and  fastened  with  a  gold 
pin.  He  called  this  his  chlamys.  The 
clothes  were  made  of  linen  or  wool. 
They  were  often  beautifully  embroid- 
ered in  gold  or  in  colors. 

Think  of  a  Greek  man  or  boy  in  white 
chiton,  and  purple,  gold-trimmed  chla- 
mys. His  clothes  hung  about  him  in  soft 
folds.  His  head  was  bare.  His  right 
arm  was  bare,  and  his  strong  legs  below 
the  knees.  He  had  sandals  on  his  feet. 
He  was  all  ready  for  any  kind  of  work. 

The  women  wore  the  same  sort  of 
clothes,  but  their  chitons  trailed  on  the 
ground  and  had  longer  blouses.  They 
were  of  brighter  colors,  too,  and  were 
more  gaily  trimmed.  The  cloaks  were 
called  himations.  These  were  some- 
times like  great  shawls  that  the  women 


THREE  GREEKS 

Both  men  wear  chitons  and  chlamyses.  The  one  at  the  left  has  a  hat 
behind  his  shoulders.  The  other  wears  high  boots.  The  woman  has  her 
himation  over  her  head. 


14  ' '  *' :  •'"•  %^76u.ti  :0J4   Greeks 

could  wrap  themselves  in  from  head  to 
feet.  But  often  the  himation  was  long 
and  narrow  like  a  scarf  and  was  thrown 
around  the  neck. 

When  Greeks  went  to  war  they  used 
spears  and  swords,  and  bows  and  ar- 
rows. They  wore  big  bronze  plates  on 
their  bodies  —  on  the  front,  on  their 
backs,  on  their  thighs,  on  their  shins. 
These  were  to  keep  off  arrows  and 
spears  and  sword  cuts.  The  metal  felt 
unpleasant  to  the  skin,  so  the  warrior 
had  a  suit  of  cloth  or  leather  under  it. 
On  his  head  he  wore  a  helmet  of  bronze 
or  silver  with  a  horse-hair  plume  on  top. 
He  carried  a  shield  on  his  left  arm. 
Sometimes  this  was  made  of  bronze, 
inlaid  with  gold  or  silver,  but  some- 
times it  was  only  many  thicknesses  of 
leather. 

The  people  thought  out  their  houses 
at  a  time  when  they  were  having  many 
wars. 

"An  enemy  can  push  in  doors  and 
windows/'  they  said.  "We  will  have 
no  windows  and  only  one  door." 

That    left   strong   walls   all    around. 


A  GREEK  WARRIOR 


16  Four  Old  Greeks 

Against  these  the  rooms  were  built. 
But  there  must  be  light  from  some- 
where, so  a  yard  was  left  in  the  middle 
of  the  house,  and  every  room  had  wide 
openings  into  it  Sometimes  there  was 
a  porch  around  the  four  sides  of  this 
yard  or  court.  That  made  it  a  pleasant 
place  to  sit  in.  The  house  was  only  one 
story  high,  with  a  flat  roof  of  thatch  or 
tile.  The  outside  walls  were  sometimes 
of  limestone  or  marble,  but  most  often 
they  were  frame  covered  with  plaster  or 
mud.  The  mud-plastered  houses  were 
usually  whitewashed. 

The  Greeks  had  no  stoves.  They 
cooked  at  an  open  fire-place  in  the 
court.  Achilles  had  a  bonfire  in  his 
great  hall,  built  on  the  dirt  floor.  There 
was  a  hole  in  the  roof  above  to  let  the 
smoke  out.  His  house  was  lighted  by 
pine  torches.  They  were  sticks  smeared 
with  pitch.  They  were  stuck  into  the 
floor,  or,  sometimes,  into  beautiful  hold- 
ers, and  were  lighted. 

Greek  ships  were  small,  carrying 
only  about  fifty  men.  There  was  a 
little  deck  at  each  end.      In  this  place 


About  Greece  and  the  Greeks  17 

goods  were  stored,  and  the  men  some- 
times slept  there.  The  middle  of  the 
ship  was  uncovered.  Here  the  crew 
worked,  and  everybody  on  board  be- 
longed to  the  crew.  There  was  no 
room  for  idle  people.  The  ship  went 
by   sail,  and  the   great  mast  stood   up 


A  GREEK  SHIP 


from  this  middle  space.  But  sometimes 
the  wind  would  stop  blowing  when  the 
boat  was  out  at  sea.  Then  the  men 
rolled  up  the  sail  and  took  down  the 
■mast  and  laid  it  in  the  bottom  of  the 
ship.      Then    they    sat    down     on    the 


i8 


Four   Old  Greeks 


benches  and  put  out  their  oars  and 
rowed,  while  a  man  kept  time  for  them. 
A  pilot  sat  on  the  deck  in  the  stern 
and  steered.      When  the  boat  came  to 

shore,  the  men  did  not 
throw  an  anchor  over- 
board. They  jumped 
out  and  pulled  the 
ship  up  on  the  sand 
away  from  the  water. 
The  Greeks  said  of 
their  boat: 

"She  is  going  on 
long  voyages.  She 
needs  eyes." 

So  they  painted  one 
on  each  side  of  her 
prow. 

All  the  pictures  in 
this  book  are  drawn 
from  statues  or  vase- 
paintings  that  the 
Greeks  made.  If  you  go  to  our  art 
stores  or  art  galleries  now  you  will  find 
them  full  of  pictures  or  casts  of  beau- 
tiful Greek  things.  There  have  been 
many  wars  in   Greece    since  those  old 


A  GREEK  VASE 


About  Greece  and  the  Greeks    ig 

artists  worked,  so  most  of  the  statues 
are  broken  and  the  paint  is  rubbed  off; 
for  the  marble  figures  used  to  be  colored 
to  appear  like  real  men.  Many  of  the 
dishes  that  we  find  are  broken,  too,  but 
they  tell  us  much  about  that  old  people ; 
for  there  are  pictures  on  them,  " vase- 
paintings,"  we  say.  The  colors  of  these 
vases  are  like  the  colors  of  this  book- 
cover. 

But  best  of  all,  we  have  many  stories 
that  the  Greeks  wrote.  Some  people  of 
now-a-da3^s  have  told  them  over  for 
children.  Here  are  the  names  of  a  few 
of  their  books : 

"Tanglewood  Tales,"  by  Hawthorne. 

"  Wonder  Book,"  by  Hawthorne. 

"The  Greek  Heroes,"  by  Kingsley. 

"Old  Greek  Stories,"  by  Baldwin. 

"The  Story  of  Ulysses,"  by  Cook. 


20  Four  Old  Greeks 

ACHILLES  AND  THE  WAR 

CHAPTER  I. 


;^y->] 


i€ri- |  ^HE  king  has  a  boy  baby.  They 
have  named  him  Achilles.  He 
will  be  our  king  some  day.  I 
hope  he  will  be  a  brave  man." 

That  is  what  the  people  of  Thessaly 
were  saying.  They  stood  in  the  streets 
and  talked  about  it.  They  could  think 
of  nothing  else;  for  a  king's  son  is  a 
great  person. 

The  mother,  ah!  she  was  a  beautiful 
woman.  Part  of  the  time  she  lived  under 
the  sea  in  a  cave  of  pearl.  She  was  as 
light  as  mist.  Her  skin  was  white  like 
the  foam  of  waves.  Her  voice  was  like 
the  sound  of  the  sea  on  a  calm  day. 
But  now  she  was  in  the  king's  palace 
with  her  baby.     She  was  saying: 

<rHow  can  we  make  him  strongest 
and  wisest?" 

The  father  thought  for  a  long  time. 
Then  he  raised  his  head  and  spoke. 


Achilles  and  the  War 


21 


"I  know  the  wisest,  kindest  being 
in  the  world.  He  lives  in  a  cave  on 
the  side  of  a  mountain.  He  loves  boys, 
and  many  kings'  sons  are  living  with 
him  now.  He  teaches  them  the  secrets 
of  the  trees  and  the  flowers,  the  animals, 
the  waters,  and  the  stars.  He  teaches 
them  to  shoot  and  to  run,  to  wrestle 
and  to  box,  to  swim  and  to  row,  to  sing 
and  to  play  the  lyre,  to  speak  the  truth 
and  to  know  no  fear.  It  is  a  good  and 
pleasant  place  to  be.  Let  us  send  him 
there  to  Cheiron,  the  Centaur.' ' 

So  Achilles  went  when  he  was  live 
years   old.      He   lived    there    for  many 


ACHILLES  AND  THE  CENTAUR  HUNTING^ 


years.  This  Cheiron  was  very  old  and 
very  strong.  Down  to  the  waist  he 
was  like  a  strong  old  man.    The  rest  of 


22  Four  Old  Greeks 

him  was  like  a  horse.  He  knew  all 
things  in  the  world  and  in  the  sky. 

All  day  long  Achilles  ran  over  the 
steep  hills.  He  jumped  from  rock  to 
rock.  He  swam  the  swift  mountain 
rivers.  At  night  he  brought  strange 
plants  to  the  cave  and  asked  Cheiron 
about  them.  Or  he  dragged  a  deer 
slung  over  his  shoulder  for  supper. 
There  came  also  the  other  kings'  sons 
with  wild  game  or  with  curious  things. 
After  supper  they  all  sang  wonderful 
stories  and  played  on  the  lyre.  They 
^— had  sports,  leaping  and  wrestling,  and 
throwing  of  quoits.  The  cave  and  the 
mountain  rang  with  their  laughter. 

At  last  Achilles  went  back  to  his 
father's  palace,  where  there  was  another 
wise  man,  Phoenix.  He  told  Achilles 
stories  of  war  and  of  heroes.  He  taught 
him  to  drive  horses  before  a  chariot. 
He  taught  him  to  throw  a  spear  and  to 
swing  a  sword.  He  taught  him  to  be 
quick  with  his  shield  to  ward  off  a  blow. 

In  the  king's  palace  lived  hundreds 
of  young  men,  servants  or  warriors. 
Among    the    young    warriors    was    one 


Achilles  and  the  War  23 

called  PatroklOs.  When  Achilles  first 
saw  him  he  said: 

" There  is  a  hero." 

He  ran  to  him  and  clasped  his  hand, 
saying : 

"You  are  my  brother.  I  will  love 
you  like  my  own  life.  You  shall  never 
leave  me," 

Patroklos'  eyes  shone. 

"My  lord,  my  brother!"  he  said;  "I 
will  follow  you  through  the  world.  I 
will  fight  for  you.  I  will  die  for  you. 
You  shall  be  the  dear  light  of  my  eyes." 

CHAPTER  II. 

Across  the  sea  from  Greece  was  a 
wonderful  city,  Troy.  The  men  of  that 
city  were  called  Trojans.1 

One  day  the  men  of  Greece  said  : 

4 'The  Trojans  have  insulted  us.  They 
have  stolen  the  most  beautiful  woman 
of  Greece.     They  have  stolen  Helen." 

Then  all  the  bravest  warriors  began 
to  shout: 

"To  war!  to  war!  Pull  down  the  ships 
to  the  shore.      Bring  spear  and  sword 


24  Four   Old  Greeks 

and  shield.  We  will  sail  to  this  Troy. 
We  will  burn  it  to  the  ground.  We 
will  bring  back  yellow-haired   Helen." 

They  gathered  at  the  shore,  ready 
to  start.  They  looked  about  to  see  all 
the  great  heroes. 

"Achilles  is  not  here,"  they  cried. 
"We  can  not  go  without  him.  Why! 
he  is  worth  a  whole  army.  Some  one 
must  go  and  get  him." 

So  some  one  went  and  Achilles  came, 
and  Patroklos  with  him.  He  brought 
fifty  ships,  and  in  every  ship  fifty  men. 
When  the  army  saw  how  big  Achilles 
was,  and  how  straight  and  how  strong, 
and  how  his  eyes  flashed,  they  caught 
their  breath  in  wonder. 

"This  is  the  greatest  and  the  most 
beautiful  man  in  the  world,"  they  told 
one  another. 

There  was  one  thing  more  to  do  be- 
fore they  were  ready  to  go.    They  said : 

1  *  We  must  have  a  leader.  Agamem*- 
non  is  richest ;  he  brought  the  most 
warriors.  Helen  was  his  brother's  wife. 
Let  him  be  our  leader." 

Now   they   marched   down   to    enter 


Achilles  and  the   War  25 

their  ships.  There  were  so  many  war- 
riors that  the  earth  groaned  under 
them.  Thdy  sailed  for  many  days,  but 
at  last  they  began  to  see  Troy.  A  high 
brick  wall  with  many  towers  was  around 
it.  It  sat  on  a  hill  a  mile  back  from 
the  sea.  A  low  plain  lay  all  around  it 
and  came  down  to  the  ocean.  Back  of 
it  were  high  mountains. 

"It  is  a  great  city/'  said  the  Greeks 
as  they  looked  at  it. 

They  sailed  along  the  coast  a  little 
way. 

"Here  is  a  good, place  to  land,"  Aga- 
memnon said  at  last. 

So  they  rowed  to  shore.  The  men 
stepped  out  and  pulled  the  boats  upon 
the  sand,  so  that  the  water  did  not 
reach  them.  Then  they  took  their 
shields  and  spears  and  swords;  some 
took  bows  and  arrows.  They  all  formed 
in  line  for  battle,  with  Achilles  and  the 
greatest  warriors  in  front. 

"We  will  march  against  Troy;  we  will 
tear  down  the  wall;  we  will  burn  the 
houses  and  bring  back  lovely  Helen," 
shouted  Agamemnon  to  the  army. 


26  Four   Old  Greeks 

And  all  the  army  shouted,  "Yes! 
yes  ! "  and  shook  their  spears. 

So  they  marched  against  Troy.  They 
fought  all  day  long,  but  they  could  not 
tear  down  the  wall,  and  they  could  not 
get  into  the  city.  The  Trojans  had 
been  ready  for  them,  and  there  were 
brave  men  in  Troy,  too.  So  the  Greeks 
camped  that  night  and  tried  again  the 
next  day.  And  many  other  days  the}^ 
tried  to  take  Troy,  but  they  could  not 
do  it.     Then  they  said  : 

"Perhaps  we  must  stay  here  a  long 
time.  Let  us  build  huts  on  the  shore 
by  the  ships  and  camp  there.  We  will 
stay  until  we  capture  Troy,  if  it  takes 
ten  years." 

So  they  went  up  to  the  mountains 
and  cut  down  pine  trees  and  dragged 
them  to  the  shore.  They  chopped  them 
and  smoothed  them  and  made  houses 
of  them.  For  the  chiefs  they  made 
houses  with  two  large  rooms  and  with 
a  porch  in  front.  The  roofs  were  made 
of  rushes  from  the  swamps.  Around 
the  houses  they  built  high,  close  fences 
of  stakes.     Near  the  chiefs  house  they 


Achilles  and  the   War  27 

built  smaller  huts  for  the  common  sol- 
diers. 

The  Trojans  looked  down  on  the 
camp  from  their  wall  and  said: 

"Why!  a  great  city  of  little  log  huts 
has  grown  up  on  our  shore.  The  ships 
lie  on  the  beach  behind.  Fires  blaze 
among  the  huts ;  smoke  of  cooking 
meat  rises.  A  million  men  are  running 
about;  it  is -a  busy  city." 

That  city  of  huts  stayed  for  ten 
years.  Day  after  day  the  Greeks  and 
Trojans  fought,  but  both  were  so  strong 
that  neither  was  beaten. 

During  all  that  time,  of  course,  the 
Greeks  had  to  have  food.  The  Trojans 
would  not  sell  it  to  them.  There  were 
many  farms  and  little  cities  around 
Troy,  but  these  people  were  friends  of 
the  Trojans,  and  they  would  not  give 
to  the  Greeks.  So  there  was  only  one 
thing  to  do;  some  of  the  Greeks  would 
go  to  these  places  and  take  the  crops 
from  the  farms.  They  would  capture 
a  small  city  and  take  good  things  from 
there  back  to  camp.  For  ten  years  they 
lived  like  this. 


28  Four  Old  Greeks 


CHAPTER   III. 

There  was  a  beautiful  place  in  the 
sky  called  Olympos,  It  was  higher  than 
any  man  could  see.  It  was  a  wonder- 
ful meadow  with  hills  around  it.  The, 
place  was  never  shaken  by  winds;  it 
was  never  wet  by  rain ;  the  snow  never 
fell  upon  it;  a  cloud  was  never  in  the 
air, —  clear,  warm  light  always  shone 
upon  it.  There  lived  the  Happy  People. 
They  were  taller  than  men ;  they  knew 
all  things.  They  could  make  things 
come  to  pass  as  they  pleased.  They 
could  stand  on  the  hills  and  look  all 
over  the  world  with  their  great  eyes. 
They  feasted  in  gold  and  silver  pal- 
aces. They  walked  among  the  stars  and 
watched  the  battles  at  Troy.  Many  of 
them  went  down  sometimes  and  helped 
in  the  war.  One  of  these  Happy  People 
was  Apollo.  The  men  of  the  earth  had 
said : 

"Does  he  not  send  the  sun  across  the 
sky  every  day  to  give  us  light  ?  Does 
he  not  shoot  monsters  that  kill  men? 
Does  he  not  make  damp  places  dry,  and 


Achilles  and  the   War  29 

cold  mountains  warm  for  us?  Let  us 
build  a  house  for  him ;  he  can  come 
there  to  rest  when  he  pleases.  We  can 
put  meat  and  fruits  there.  We  must 
have  some  one  to  take  care  of  the  house 
and  to  burn  the  meat  and  fruit,  for  the 
smoke  will  go  up  to  Apollo  in  the  sky. 
It  will  make  him  strong  and  glad,  and 
he  will  say,  'Ah!  my  people  love  me." 

So  they  built  him  beautiful  houses 
everywhere.  One  was  in  a  small  city 
near  Troy.  Chryses  took  care  of  that 
house.  He  had  a  beautiful  daughter, 
Chryseis,  who  lived  with  him. 

Once  when  the  Greeks  were  hungry 
they  went  to  this  small  city  and  fought 
with  the  men.  They  tore  down  the 
walls  and  went  in.  They  took  jars  of 
wine,  naeats,  fruits,  spears,  swords,  and 
armor,  sheep,  oxen,  and  horses,  and 
servants.  They  took  the  gold  and  sil- 
ver dishes  from  Apollo's  house:  And 
they  took  Chryseis.  They  brought 
everything  to  one  place ;  the  army 
stood  around  that  great  pile  of  riches. 
All  this  was  to  be  divided  among  the 
soldiers. 


jo  Four   Old  Greeks 

"To  our  leader,  Agamemnon,"  they 
said,  "we  will  give  these  golden  dishes 
and  the  beautiful  Chryseis  for  a  servant. 
Achilles  shall  have  this  other  beautiful 
girl,  Briseis,  for  his  servant.  Let  every- 
thing else  be  divided  equally  among 
us." 

Each  man  took  his  share,  and  the 
army  marched  back  to  camp. 

Chryses  stood  before  the  empty  house 
of  Apollo  and  wept  for  his  daughter. 
He  gathered  together  much  gold ;  for 
the  Greeks  had  not  found  it  all.  He 
put  on  the  long  purple  robe  that  he 
wore  when  he  was  serving  Apollo.  He 
took  the  golden  staff  in  his  hand,  to 
show  that  he  was  keeper  of  Apollo's 
house.  In  the  other  hand  he  carried 
the  treasure.  He  walked  along  the 
shore  to  the  Greek  camp,  and  went 
among  the  huts  and  ships.  At  last 
he  came  to  where  Agamemnon  and 
Achilles  and  all  the  chiefs  were  talking. 

"Noble  Agamemnon,"  he  said,  "and 
brave  Greeks,  may  the  Happy  People 
of  the  sky  be  kind  to  you ;  may  you 
get   back    Helen ;    may    you   go    home 


Achilles  and  the   War  ji 

happy  ;  but  give  me  my  dear  daughter. 
Take  this  gold  and  give  me  Chryseis." 

When  the  Greeks  saw  his  white  hair 
and  his  gentle  face  they  said  : 

1 '  Give  him  back  his  daughter  ;  he 
is  a  good  old  man." 

But  Agamemnon  scowled  at  him, 
saying : 

"Old  man,  go  home;  I  will  keep 
your  daughter.  Go  before  I  grow  more 
angry,"  and  he  shook  his  fist  at  him. 

Chryses  was  afraid  and  went  away. 
He  walked  along  the  shore  of  the  sea 
and  wept.  He  raised  both  his  hands 
and  looked  up  to  where  Apollo  lived; 
crying  : 

"O  giver  of  light,  lord  of  the  silver 
bow,  Apollo,  hear  me !  The  Greeks 
have  stolen  my  dear  daughter,  and  will 
not  give  her  back.     Help  me  ! " 

Apollo  was  feasting  in  the  golden 
palace,  but  he  heard  the  prayer.  It 
made  him  angry  with  the  Greeks.  He 
took  his  great  silver  bow  and  threw  a 
quiver  of  arrows  over  his  shoulder.  He 
took  large  steps  down  the  sky.  The 
arrows  clanged  at  his  back.     He  came 


32  Four   Old  Greeks 

like  a  black  storm-cloud.  He  stood  on 
the  shore,  away  from  the  ships.  Then 
he  let  the  arrows  fly  fast.  He  shot  the 
dogs  and  the  mules,  and  they  died. 
Then  he  shot  the  men,  and  they  died. 
For  nine  days  he  stood  so  shooting  his 
arrows. 

The  Greeks  could  not  think  why 
Apollo  was  angry  with  them.  They 
could  not  think  what  to  do.  But  at 
last  Achilles  went  to  all  the  ships  and 
said  to  the  chiefs : 

"Let  us  all  come  together  and  try 
to  find  out  why  Apollo  is  angry/' 

So  they  all  came.  A  wise  man  stood 
up  and  spoke  : 

"Apollo  is  angry  because  we  would 
not  give  Chryseis  to  her  father.  If  we 
send  her  back  now  he  will  forgive  us ; 
he  will  shut  his  quiver  and  go  up  to 
Olympos." 

Then  Agamemnon  scowled  at  the  old 
man  and  said : 

' '  Speaker  of  evil !  you  are  always 
saying  unpleasant  things.  But  if  I 
must,  I  will  give  her  back.  But  I  will 
not  go  without  any  prize.    Get  me  ready 


A   GREEK  KING 


34  Four  Old  Greeks 

some  other  thing  and  give  it  to  me 
in  place  of  her." 

Achilles  pointed  his  finger  at  the 
king. 

V' Stingiest  of  men!"  he  said.  "Are 
you  not  willing  to  do  this  for  your  peo- 
ple? Do  you  love  a  prize  better  than 
your  army?  How  can  we  get  you  a 
present  now?  They  have  all  been  given 
out  to  the  men.  Shall  we  go  begging 
them  back?  Come,  give  her  up,  be 
generous.  Wait  until  we  take  another 
town,  and  we  will  give  you  three  times 
your  share." 

Then  Agamemnon  said : 

"A  prize  is  the  sign  of  a  brave  man, 
and  prizes  make  men  rich.  Do  you 
think  that  I  will  go  without  any  gift, 
while  you  stalk  about  proud  and  ,rich 
in  yours  ?  Beware  !  For  I  will  come  to 
your  hut  and  take  away  Briseis  and 
keep  her." 

Achilles  shook  with  anger.  He  put 
his  hand  on  his  sword  anci  was  pulling 
it  out  to  strike  Agamemnon.  But  he 
stopped.  He  ground  his  teeth.  He  was 
thinking : 


Achilles  and  the   War  35 

"A  cut  of  the  sword  would  do  no 
good." 

He  pushed  the  sword  into  its  sheath 
again.  He  threw  back  his  head  and 
looked  at  Agamemnon. 

1 '  Coward ! "  he  said,  and  shut  his  teeth 
hard.  "You  were  always  afraid  to  fight 
in  the  front  of  the  battle,  but  you  lay 
safely  in  your  hut  while  brave  men  won 
prizes  for  you.  And  now  you  are  going 
to  steal  one^  Well,  take  her,  but  listen 
to  me.  Some  day  you  will  be  sorry  for 
this ;  you  will  weep  and  tear  your  heart 
because  Achilles  is  not  there  to*  help 
you.  But  fight  your  own  battles*  if  you 
can ;  I  will  sit  still  in  my  ship  and  watch 
3^ou.  Brave  Agamemnon!  Stingy  Aga- 
memnon!" 

He  stamped  his  foot  and  walked  away 
to  his  hut.  Soon  heralds  came  and 
took  Briseis.  Then  Achilles  went  to 
the  shore  of  the  sea.  He  sat  down 
and  leaned  his  head  on  his  arms  and 
wept.  He  called  to  his  mother,  who 
was  under  the  se$,  in  her  cave  of  pearl. 
She  heard  him  and  came  up  and  over 
the  water  like  a  mist.     She  sat  by  him 


3* 


Four   Old  Greeks 


and  put  her  hand 
on  his  face. 

"What  is  it,  my 
dear  son?" 

"Agamemnon 
has  insulted  me," 
answered  Achil- 
les. "He  has  taken 
my  prize.  Briseis 
is  gone." 

His  mother 
stroked  his  hair 
and  said: 

"Surely,  that 
was  a  cowardly 
thing,  but  cheer 
a  woman with a  jewel-box  your    heart,    11157' 

Perhaps skeisBrueis^oin^ay.        ^^  gwallow   yQUr 

anger.     Some  time  Agamemnon  will  be 
sorry." 

She  talked  to  him  for  a  long  time 
and  comforted  him.  But  the  anger  was 
still  hot  in  Achilles  heart.  He  would 
not  talk  to  the  Greeks;  he  would  not 
go  to  battle.  For  many  weeks  he  sat 
by  his  ships  and  scowled  at  all  the  Greek 
camp. 


^Ip^j 

2JL  a 

/My 

mSsT 

/I'l'iSn^if/liHi 

m 

M 

m>    ^t£S^T3 

Achilles  and  the   War  37 

CHAPTER  IV. 

There  were  battles  every  day.  Some- 
times the  Trojans  stood  on  the  wall 
of  the  city.  Then  the  Greeks  came 
and  stood  all  around  the  city  and 
tried  to  break  down  the  wall  and  get 
in.  Sometimes  the  Trojans  came  out 
on  the  plain;  then  the  Greeks  fought 
them  there. 

Priam,  the  King  of  Troy,  was  too  old 
to  fight.  He  and  the  other  old  men 
used  to  sit  on  the  wall  and  watch  the 
battles.  Down  on  the  plain  the  armor 
blazed  like  fire  ;  helmet  plumes  waved, 
dust  rose  from  under  men's  feet,  swords 
clashed,  men  shouted.  The  armies 
pushed  back  and  forth.  The  old  men 
looked  always  at  Hector;  he  was  Priam's 
son.  He  was  the  bravest  man  in  the 
war,  now  that  Achilles  was  gone.  The 
Trojans  loved  him  and  called  him  "the 
Strong  Wall  of  Troy." 

Once  when  the  old  men  were  sitting 
watching  the  battle,  Helen  came.  Long, 
shining  white  linen  hung  soft  and  loose 
about    her.       She    walked    slowly    and 


j8  Four  Old  Greeks 

sighed.  When  the  old  men  saw  her, 
they  whispered  to  one  another: 

* '  It  is  no  wonder  that  the  Greeks  have 
come  so  far  to  get  her,  or  that  they 
fight  so  long.  She  is  wonderful ;  flowers 
or  the  moon  is  not  so  beautiful." 

Priam  looked  at  her  and  smiled;  he 
was  proud  of  her. 

"Come  here,  my  child,"  he  said,  "sit 
by  me  and  tell  me  who  these  Greek 
warriors  are/' 

So  Helen  went  and  sat  by  him.  She 
looked  at  the  battle  and  told  the  names 
of  the  warriors.  She  thought  of  her 
home  in  Greece  and  sighed. 

The  other  women  of  Troy,  too,  used 
to  go  to  the  walls  and  watch  the  bat- 
tles. Everybody  was  sad  and  afraid 
and  wished  that  the  war  would  end. 

Day  after  day  the  armies  fought. 
Sometimes  the  Greeks  won,  sometimes 
the  Trojans  won.  Still  Troy  was  safe, 
and  still  the  Greeks  would  not  go 
home. 

One  day  the  Greeks  were  winning, 
and  the  Trojans  were  very  much  afraid. 
Hector  thought: 


Achilles  and  the   War  jg 

"  Perhaps  Athene  would  help  us  if 
the  women  asked  her." 

Athene  was  one  of  the  Happy  People. 
She  lived  on  Olympos  in  a  golden  pal- 
ace with  Apollo  and  the  others,  but  she 
also  had  many  houses  on  the  earth. 
She  was  watching  the  battles  of  Troy. 
She  often  came  down  and  helped  the 
Greeks  ;  for  she  liked  them  better  than 
the  Trojans. 

So  Hector  left  the  battle  and  went  to 
the  city.  As  he  came  near  the  gate,  all 
the  women  ran  to  him. 

"Tell  me  of  my  son!" 

"Have  you  seen  my  husband?" 

"Is  my  brother  well?"  they  asked  him 
all  together. 

"I  cannot  tell  you,"  he  said,  sadly. 
"Come  with  me  to  my  mother;  you  must 
go  to  Athene's  house." 

So  they  followed  him  to  his  mother 
in  the  great  stone  palace. 

"Mother,"  said  Hector,  "take  the 
most  beautiful  robe  in  the  city,  carry 
it  to  Athene's  house  and  put  it  on  her 
wooden  statue.  Ask  her  to  help  us  in 
battle.  She  will  hear  you  from  Olympos." 


40  Four  Old  Greeks 

So  the  woman  did.  Hector  went  to 
his  own  house.  He  looked  all  through 
it  for  his  wife,  white-armed  Andro- 
mache, but  he  could  not  find  her.  So 
he  asked  the  servants. 

"She  ran  to  the  wall  to  see  the 
battle,' '  they  said.  "The  nurse  went 
with  her  and  carried  your  little  son." 

Then  Hector  walked  fast  along  the 
streets  and  to  the  city  wall.  Andro- 
mache saw  him  and  ran  to  him. 

"Ah!  Hector,  my  dear  lord!"  she 
cried,  "you  are  too  brave.  I  have 
been  watching  you.  You  are  always 
in  the  worst  place;  every  Greek  throws 
his  spear  at  you  because  you  are  the 
bravest.  Hector,  I  have  no  friend  but 
you ;  no  father,  no  mother.  Come, 
stay  here  with  me  and  your  little 
son  ;  I  am  afraid  to  have  you  in  the 
battle." 

Hector  stroked  her  hair  and  smiled 
at  her. 

"I  have  thought  of  these  things," 
he  said,  "but  I  should  be  a  coward  to 
stay.  They  need  me.  I  must  always 
be  in  the  front  of  the  battle  ;   I  must 


Achilles  and  the   War  41 

fight  for  Troy,  for  my  father  and  mother 
and  for  you." 

Then  he  stretched  out  his  hands  to 
the  baby  in  the  nurse's  arms.  But  the 
child  was  afraid  of  the  big  shining  hel- 
met on  Hector's  head  ;  he  hid  his  face 
on  the  nurse's  breast  and  cried.  His 
father  and  mother  laughed.  Hector  took 
off  the  helmet  and  threw  it  on  the 
ground.  Then  he  took  the  baby  and 
kissed  him,  and  tossed  him  in  his  arms. 

"O  you  Happy  People  in  Olympos," 
he  cried,  "be  kind  to  my  little  son. 
Let  him  live  and  grow  to  be  a  great 
king.  May  the  people  say  of  him,  'he 
is  a  better  man  than  his  father  was.' 
Let  him  make  his  mother's  heart  glad." 

He  gave  the  baby  to  his  wife.  Again 
he  stroked  her  with  his  hand  and  said: 

"Dear  one,  do  not  be  sad;  go  home, 
weave  at  the  loom,  do  the  work  of  the 
house  and  be  happy.  But  I  must  go  to 
battle." 

He  put  on  his  helmet  and  started 
for  the  gate.  Andromache  went  on  her 
way  home,  but  she  kept  looking  back 
at  Hector.    Big  tears  fell  from  her  eyes. 


42  Four  Old  Greeks 

Hector  went  again  to  the  battle  and 
walked  out  between  the  two  armies. 
Holding  his  long  spear  by  the  middle, 
he  shouted  to  the  armies,  and  his  voice 
was  like  the  voice  of  thunder: 

"  Listen  to  me,  Trojans  and  Greeks !" 

The  fighting  stopped,  and  the  men 
sat  on  the  ground. 

"The  armies  have  fought  long  and 
hard,"  said  Hector,  "the  men  are  tired 
and  wounded.  Let  them  sit  and  rest. 
But  I  will  fight  alone  with  any  Greek. 
Who  will  fight  with  me?" 

The  Greeks  looked  at  one  another, 
but  all  were  silent.  They  were  afraid 
of  Hector.     At  last  some  one  said, 

"Let  us  cast  lots." 

So  they  cast  lots,  and  Ajax  was 
chosen.  He  was  the  largest  man  of  all 
the  army. 

He  came  striding  into  the  space  where 
Hector  was  and  shook  his  long  spear. 
The  Greeks  were  glad  as  they  looked  at 
him,  he  was  so  big  and  strong.  But 
the  Trojans  were  afraid;  even  Hector's 
heart  beat  fast. 

"Hector!"  shouted  Ajax,  in  a  voice 


Achilles  and  the  War  43 

like  the  roar  of  a  lion,  ' '  I  am  not  afraid 
to  face  you.     Begin !" 

Then  Hector  poised  his  long  spear 
and  threw  it.  Ajax  caught  it  on  his 
shield.  Hector  threw  it  so  hard  that 
the  point  went  through  the  bronze  and 
leather  to  the  last  layer  of  the  shield, 
but  there  it  stopped  and  broke.  Then 
Ajax  shouted: 

"Now!"  and  threw  his  spear. 

It  cut  through  Hector's  armor  and 
scraped  his  side.  Hector  threw  another 
spear ;  it  stuck  in  Ajax  shield.  Then 
Ajax  leaped  at  Hector  and  drove  a  spear 
into  his  neck.  Hector  staggered,  the 
blood  gushed  out,  but  still  he  was  not 
afraid.  He  caught  up  a  great  stone 
from  the  ground  and  threw  it  hard. 
Ajax  jumped  aside  and  caught  it  on 
his  shield;  the  shield  rang.  Then  Ajax 
threw  a  great  stone.  It  crushed  in  Hec- 
tor's armor,  and  he  fell.  The  Greeks 
shouted;  the  Trojans  groaned.  But  al- 
most immediately  Hector  jumped  up. 
He  caught  his  sword  and  was  rushing 
at  Ajax,  when  the  heralds  came  between 
them. 


44  Pour   Old  Greeks 

"Fight  no  more,"  the3^  said,  "night 
is  coming  on." 

So  they  stopped,    and    Hector    said : 

"Ajax,  you  are  the  best  of  the  Greeks. 
We  have  fought  hard,  but  let  us  give 
presents  before  we  part.  Then  the  peo- 
ple may  say,  'These  men  fought  against 
each  other,  but  they  parted  friends. 

He  took  off  his  sword  and  silver  scab- 
bard with  the  belt  and  gave  it  to  Ajax, 
and  Ajax  gave  him  his  purple  belt. 
Then  they  went  back  to  their  own 
armies,  and  all  the  men  cooked  their 
supper  at  camp-fires  and  ate. 

CHAPTER  V. 

That  night  the  Greeks  talked  among 
themselves  and  said : 

'  'The  Trojans  have  been  getting  the 
better  of  us.  They-  are  camped  near  us 
now.  Suppose  to-morrow  they  should 
come  here  to  fight  and  drive  us  into  the 
sea  and  burn  our  huts  and  our  ships! 
Let  us  build  a  high  wall  of  earth  around 
the  camp." 

So  they  built  it.     They  piled  it  twice 


Achilles  and  the   War  45 

as  high  as  a  man.  They  made  watch 
towers  on  top  of  the  wall  and  gates 
where  the  army  could  go  out  upon  the 
plain.  Just  outside  they  dug  a  deep 
ditch  and  drove  sharp  stakes  into  the 
bottom  of  it.     They  said: 

"No  man  can  come  alive  through 
that.  Now  we  are  safe ;  the  wall  and 
the  ditch  are  in  front  and  on  the  sides, 
the  sea  is  behind,  and  the  huts  and  ships 
are  shut  in  here." 

On  the  next  day  they  went  to  the 
plain  to  fight.  It  was  the  worst  fight 
for  the  Greeks  that  had  ever  been.  The 
Trojans  pushed  them  back  and  back. 
At  last  the  Greeks  were  afraid  ;  they 
turned  and  ran  through  the  gates  and 
into  the  camp.  The  Trojans  ran  after 
them,  but  the  Greeks  shut  the  gates 
in  their  faces.  Then  they  went  upon 
the  wall  and  shot  down  upon  the  Tro- 
jans. But  night  came,  and  the  battle 
stopped. 

During  that  night  the  Greeks  came 
together  to  talk.     Agamemnon  said: 

" I  was  wrong  to  make  Achilles  angry. 
He  is  worth  a  whole  army.    The  Trojans 


46 


Four  Old  Greeks 


will  burn  our  ships  if  he  does  not  help 
us.  I  will  send  him  rich  gifts  and  ask 
him  to  come  back.  I  will  give  him 
many  gold  and  silver  dishes  and  seven 
servants  and  twelve  horses,  and,  besides; 
I  will  give  back  Briseis.  When  we 
return  home  I  will  make  him  my  son 
and  will  give  him  seven  cities.  All  this 
I  will  do  if  he  will  come  and  help  us. 
Here  is  Phoenix,  his  old  teacher ;  let 
him  and  Odysseus  and  Ajax  and  two 
heralds  go  to  Achilles'  hut  and  tell  him 
what  I  say." 


WOMEN  PLAYING  ON  LYRES 


Achilles  and  the   War  47 

So  these  men  walked  along  the  shore 
to  .where  Achilles'  ships  were.  When 
they  came  near  they  saw  Achilles  sit- 
ting in  front  of  his  door.  He  was  play- 
ing a  great  lyre  and  singing.  Near  him 
sat  Patroklos  looking  at  him  and  lis- 
tening to  the  song.  Achilles  raised  his 
head  and  saw  Phoenix  and  the  others. 
He  sprang  up  from  his  chair  and  ran 
towards  them,  with  the  lyre  in  his  hand. 

"Now  welcome,  dearest  of  the 
Greeks,"  he  cried;  "you  are  friends 
indeed  to  come." 

He  spread  purple  cloth  on  carved 
chairs. 

"Come,  sit  with  us,"  and  he  led  them 
to  the  seats.  "Patroklos,  bring  a  large 
bowl  and  mix  a  sweet  drink  for  our 
friends." 

-  Then  all  the  servants  of  the  hut  put 
^their  hands  to  work  and  were  busy. 
They  built  a  bonfire  before  the  door; 
they  cut  great  pieces  of  meat  and  put 
them  upon  spits  and"  roasted  them  in 
the  fire.  They  put  meat,  wine,  honey, 
and  baskets  of  bread  on  the  table.  Then 
Achilles  and  Patroklos  and  their  visitors 


Four   Old  Greeks 


sat  down  and  feasted.  When  the  feast 
was  over,  Odysseus  said: 

"The  feast  has  been  very  pleasant, 
Achilles,  but  we  have  other  things  to 
do.  We  fear  that  the  Trojans  will  burn 
our  ships.  They  have  driven  us  into 
our  camp;  they  are  now  camping  in 
front  of  us.  Their  watch-fires  are  as 
many  as  the  stars.  Hector  rages  like 
a  lion.  He  says  that  to-morrow  he  will 
break  off  the  beaks  of  the  ships,.  He 
says  that  he  will  burn  the  ships  wHh 
fire.  We  are  lost  if  you  do  not  come. 
Help  us,  then;  up  and  come!  Listen  to 
what  Agamemnon  promises  if  you  will 
forget  your  anger."  He  told  him  of 
the  gifts.  ' '  But  if  you  do  not  care  for 
the  gifts,  come  for  the  sake  of  your 
friends/' 

But  Achilles  answered: 

1  ?  I  will  not  do  it.  Agamemnon  is  a 
coward  and  mean;  I  will  have  nothing 
to  do  with  him.  Let  mfe  tell  you  how 
he  has  treated  me.  With  my  own  spear 
and  the  spears  of  my  men  I  have  taken 
twenty-three  cities.  Nobody  helped  us. 
While   I   was    fighting,    Agamemnon 


Achilles  and  the   War  #g 

stayed  saf6ly  in  his  hut;  but  I  brought 
back  all  the  prizes,  the  meat  and  fruit, 
the  grain  and  horses,  and  the  gold,  to 
him.  He  took  the  largest  part.  He 
gave  rich  prizes  to  the  other  chiefs.  To 
me  he  always  gave  only  a  little  prize. 
-Besides,  what  are  you  fighting  for? 
What  is  Helen  to  me  ?  I  never  saw  her. 
Let  hei4  own^  people  fight  for  her.  My 
mother  has  told  me  a  sad  thing.  She 
said,  '  If  you  stay  here  and  fight  you 
will  do  glorious  things,  but  you  will  die 
here  and  never  see  your  country  and 
father  again/  So  I  am  going  home  now. 
Watch  to-morrow  and  you  will  see  my 
ships  sailing  for  Greece.  Phoenix,  you 
loved  me  when  I  was  a  boy,  stay  with 
me  to-night  and  go  home  to-morrow.' ' 

Phoenix  wept,  thinking  of  the  sorrow 
of  the  Greeks.  He  begged  Achilles  to 
help. 

"It  is  not  like  a  hero  to  stay  angry 
always,"  he  said. 

But  Achilles  shook  his  head.  So 
Phoenix  stayed,  for  he  said: 

"I  love  him  better  than  all  the  rest. 
He  is  like  my  own  son." 


50  Four  Old  Greeks 

The  others  went  back  to  camp  and 
told  the  Greeks  what  Achilles  had  said. 
The  chiefs  were  silent  and  gloomy 
when  they  heard  the  news. 

"We  are  lost!"  they  thought. 

CHAPTER  VI. 

But  Achilles  did  not  sail  home  on 
the  next  day.  Early  in  the  morning  a 
great  fight  began  between  the  Greeks 
and  Trojans.  It  was  the  worst  battle 
that  had  been  fought;  the  noise  was 
like  thunder.  Achilles  heard  it  and 
stayed  to  watch.  He  stood  on  the  high 
part  of  the  ship  and  shaded  his  eyes 
with  his  hand. 

"Ah!  it  is  a  brave  fight,"  he  said, 
and  stamped  his  foot. 

His  soldiers  were  sitting  or  walking 
on  the  beach.  He  kept  calling  to  them 
and  telling  them  of  the  battle. 

"Hector  is  raging  like  a  lion,"  he 
called.  "His  arm  is  like  a  falling  tree. 
The  Greeks  run  or  die  before  him." 

Then  he  watched  Agamemnon  for  a 
long  time. 


Achilles  and  the   War  5/ 

"You  are  a  brave  man  to-da}^,  Aga- 
memnon," he  said  to  himself;  "I  could 
almost  forgive  you." 

All  at  once  he  leaned  forward  quickly 
and  frowned. 

"Agamemnon  is  wounded/'  he  called 
to  his  men. 

His  eyes  flashed;  he  drew  his  sword. 

"Stand  back,  you  Trojans!"  he 
shouted;  but,  of  course,  they  could  not 
hear  him. 

He  cried  again  to  his  men: 

"He  is  going  away  in  his  chariot." 

Achilles  kept  on  looking  for  a  long 
time.  He  saw  a  dozen  of  the  bravest 
men  wounded  and  going  away.  He 
walked  up  and  down  the  deck  and 
shook  his  spear  at  the  Trojans.  He 
shouted  at  the  Greeks.  At  last  a  chariot 
dashed  past  near  his  ship.  One  man 
was  driving,  another  was  lying  on  the 
bottom  of  the  chariot. 

"Patroklos!"  called  Achilles. 

Patroklos  came  out  from  the  hut 
where  he  had  been  working. 

"Run  and  see  who  is  in  that 
chariot,"  Achilles    said    to    him.     "The 


52  Four  Old  Greeks 

wounded  man  looked  like  our  friend, 
the  great  physician.  But  I  could  not 
see  well,  the  horses  flew  so  fast ;  run 
quickly/ ' 

So  Patroklos  ran,  while  Achilles  stood 
watching  the  fight.  The  Trojans  were' 
pushing  the  Greeks  back  and  back. 
Many  of  the  Grecian  warriors  fell  into 
the  ditch.  The  others  ran  through  the 
gates  and  shut  them  and  got  upon  the 
wall  and  fought.  The  Trojans  outside 
pushed  on  the  gates  and  threw  stones 
against  them.    But  the  heavy  logs  stood. 

Achilles  watched  and  ground  his 
teeth. 

"They  have  broken  in  the  gates,"  he 
shouted  to  his  men  (after  a  while,  groan- 
ing as  he  said  it. 

Then  the  Trojans  rushed  into  the 
camp.  They  ran  about  among  the  huts 
and  threw  their  spears  and  shot  their 
arrows.  The  Greeks  were  chased  down 
to  their  ships,  but  there  they  stopped 
and  fought  their  hardest.  At' last  Hector 
broke  through  their  line.  He  put  his 
hand  on  a  ship. 

"Bring  fire!"  he  shouted  to  the  Trojans. 


Achilles  and  the   War  53 


M-CN 

CKTOP    KAAMTJ1P 

^^^v 

CniNAYtlMAjTN 

A.AHAI    *B£|f 

FIGHT  A  T  THE  SHIPS 

Hector •,  with  a  burning  torch  in  his  hand%  stands  nearest  the  ship  ready 

to  set  it  on  fire.    His  name  in  Greek  letters  is  below  him. 

So  they  burned  that  ship.  Achilles 
saw  it,  but  he  only  stood  and  shook 
hisr  spear  at  them.  He  did  not  go  to 
help. 

Now  Patroklos  came  running  back. 

"O,  Achilles,"  he  cried,  "be  angry  no 
longer,  it  was  the  physician!  All  the 
best  men  of  the  Greeks  lie  in  the  ships 
sick  and  wounded  by  spear  or  arrow. 
Will  you  stand  idle  and  see  all  the  ships 
burned  and  the  Greeks  killed?  Surely, 
gentle  Thetis  is  not  your  mother;  a 
hard  rock  is  your  mother,  the  angry  sea 
is  your  father;  so  cruel  is  your  heart. 
But  if  you  will  not  go,  let  me  go.  Let 
me  wear  your  armor;  it  will  frighten  the 
Trojans  away." 

"  You  shall  go!  "said  Achilles  gruffly. 
"As  soon  as  the  Trojans  see  my  helmet 


54 


Fou7'   Old  Greeks 


they  will  run,  and  the  Greeks  will  be 
safe." 

Tiien  he  looked  toward  the  ships. 

! 'Another  ship  on  fire!"  he  cried. 
"Quick,  Patroklos!  put  on  my  armor,  I 
will  call  the  soldiers." 

There  was  a  great  hurry  and  running 
and  clashing  of  swords  and  shields. 
When  all    the    men    were    ready   they 


A   GREEK  CHARIOT 

formed  in  line  and  waited  for  a  minute. 
Patroklos  was  standing  in  a  chariot  in 
front  of  the  line;  his  armor  shone  like 
terrible  lightning.  The  others  were  on 
foot. 


Achilles  and  the   War  55 

Then  Achilles  lifted  his  hands  to  the 
sky. 

" Great  Zeus,"  he  said,  "help  my 
friend  in  battle,  let  him  save  the  Greeks, 
let  him  come  back  to  me  unhurt. " 

The  horses  shot  forward;  the  men  ran. 

1  They    dashed    into    the  Trojans ;    they 

drove  them  from  the  camp  and  put  out 

the   fire.     The   half-burned   ships   were 

left  there.     Then  Patroklos  shouted: 

, ' '  Come,  let  us   chase   them   back  to 
Troy." 

He  rode  on  and  all  the  Greeks  fol- 
lowed. He  swung  his  great  sword.  His 
helmet  blinded  the  Trojans. 

They  ran  away  crying: 

"It  is  Achilles!" 

Achilles  was  standing  on  his  ship 
again  watching.  When  he  saw  Patrok- 
los chasing  the  Trojans  across  the  plain, 
he  cried : 

"Come  back,  Patroklos!  Not  so  far! 
Some  one  will  kill  you!  Oh,  I  cannot 
see  so  far!" 

He  walked  up  and  down  the  deck. 
He  beat  his  breast  with  his  hand  and 
kept  calling  Patroklos, 


56  Four    Old  Greeks 

When  the  Trojans  came  to  the  city- 
wall  they  stopped.  Hector  stood  and 
waited  for  Patroklos.  He  threw  his 
spear,  and  Patroklos  fell  down  dead. 
The  Trojans  now  took  courage  and 
stood  up  against  the  Greeks.  They 
pushed  them  back  again,  into  the  ditch 
and  through  the  gates.  Then  they  stood 
there  fighting,  the  Greeks  on  the  wall, 
the  Trojans  outside. 

When  Patroklos  was  killed,  a  young 
man  ran  to  tell  Achilles.  He  found  him 
leaning  forward,  shading  his  eyes  with 
his  hand,  saying: 

" Where  is  Patroklos?  Why  are  they 
coming  back?    Where  is  Patroklos '?" 

Then  the  young  man  told  him  that 
Patroklos  was  dead.  The  spear  fell  from 
Achilles'  hand;  he  clasped  his  head  and 
fell  down  on  the  deck  and  wept  and 
kept  calling: 

' '  Patroklos !     Patroklos ! ' ' 

His  mother,  Thetis,  heard  him  in  her 
cave.  She  came  over  the  water  to  him 
and  took  his  head  in  her  hands. 

"My  son,  what  is  your  sorrow?"  she 
asked. 


Achilles  and  the   War  57 

Achilles  said : 

"Patroklos  is  dead,  and  I  was  not 
there  to  help  him.  Shame  upon  me ! 
I  sat  here  in  my  ship  because  I  was 
angry.  Oh,  shame !  Now  I  must  go 
and  help  them." 

"  You  shall  go,"  said  Thetis,  "but  not 
now.  You  have  no  armor.  Hector  is 
wearing  yours.  I  will  go  to  Hephaestos 
and  ask  him  to  make  you  new  armor. 
Then  you  shall  go." 

She  went  away. 

Achilles  looked  at  the  battle  and  saw 
Hector  ready  to  break  in  the  gate. 
Achilles  scowled  and  stood  up.  A 
golden  cloud  was  around  his  head,  fire 
blazed  above  it;  his  eyes  shot  lightning. 
He  strode  toward  the  wall  like  a  lion. 
At  the  ditch  he  stopped  and  shouted. 
The  Trojans  ceased  fighting,  their  knees 
trembled,  and  their  spears  dropped  from 
their  hands.  He  shouted  again.  Some 
of  the  Trojans  turned  and  ran  away. 
He  shouted  once  more  and  lifted  his 
hands.     Then  all  the  Trojans  cried: 

"He  is  coming!"  and  they  ran  away. 

Even  Hector  was  afraid  and  ran. 


58  Four  Old  Greeks 

CHAPTER  VII. 

It  was  night.  Thetis  was  on  her 
way  to  Olympos  to  the  silver  house  of 
Hephaestos  the  blacksmith.  When  she 
came  he  was  still  working  at  his  forge. 
But  he  put  his  tools  away  in  the  chest, 
washed  his  face  and  hands  with  a  sponge 
and  came  limping  to  meet  her;  for  he 
was  lame. 

"Welcome,  dear  Thetis,"  he  said. 
' '  But  there  are  tears  on  your  face ! 
What  is  your  sorrow  ?" 

She  told  him  about  Achilles  and 
Patroklos. 

"And  I  have  come  to  ask  you  for 
armor,"  she  said.  "Will  you  make  him 
shield  and  helmet  and  breastplate  and 
greaves?" 

"Most  gladly  will  I  do  it,  Thetis," 
Hephaestos  answered;  "it  shall  be  the 
finest  armor  that  any  man  ever  wore." 

He  walked  quickly  back  to  the  forge 
and  put  on  his  leather  apron.  He  turned 
the  bellows  on  the  fire  and  took  hammers 
and  files  and  chisels  from  the  tool-box. 
Then  he  threw  great  pieces  of  tin,  bronze, 


Achilles  and  the   War  59 

silver,  and  gold  into  pots  and  put  them 
into  the  fire  to  heat.  After  a  while  he 
took  out  a  piece  of  bronze  with  tongs 
and  put  it  on  the  anvil.  Then  he  ham- 
mered it  for  a  long  time,  until  it  was 
round  and  smooth  like  a  shield.  He 
took  pieces  of  tin  and  silver  and  gold 
and  hammered  them  into  thin  strips. 
Of  these  he  made  narrow  bands  around 
the  edge  of  the  shield.  In  the  center 
of  the  shield  he  made  pictures  of  gold 
and  silver.  In  one  picture  young  men 
were  whirling  in  a  dance ;  and  there 
was  a  wedding  march,  with  people  sing- 
ing and  carrying  torches.  In  another 
picture  men  were  ploughing  a  field.  In 
another,  men  were  harvesting  wheat  and 
the  women  were  preparing  the  supper. 
In  still  another  picture  there  was  a 
vineyard.  The  poles  were  of  silver,  the 
fence  was  of  tin;  girls  and  boys  were 
picking  the  purple  grapes.  And,  again, 
there  was  a  herd  of  cattle,  with  men  and 
dogs  to  watch,  all  made  of  gold.  There 
was  also  a  pasture  with  silver  sheep.  In 
the  last  picture  were  two  armies  fighting 
near  a  walled  city.     All  these  pictures 


60  Four  Old  Greeks 

were  made  of  gold  and  silver  and  tin 
in  the  center  of  the  shield.  Around 
them  were  bands  of  gold  and  silver 
and  tin.  The  shield  would  cover  a  man 
from  his  neck  to  his  knees.  On  the 
helmet,  breastplate,  and  greaves  there 
were  pictures  of  horses  and  of  men 
fighting. 

Before  morning  the  armor  was  all  fin- 
ished and  Hephaestos  gave  it  to  Thetis. 
.She  took  it  and  went  stepping  quickly 
through  the  air  to  Achilles.  She  dropped 
the  armor  at  his  feet;  it  rang  as  it  fell. 
Achilles'  eyes  flashed  when  he  heard  it. 
He  took  up  the  shield  and  turned  it 
round  and  round  and  rubbed  his  hand 
over  it. 

"I  never  saw  so  wonderful  a  shield 
before,"  he  said. 

Then  he  put  on  the  armor.  He 
laughed  with  joy  when  he  felt  it  on 
him.  It  was  a  long  time  since  he  had 
worn  armor  and  fought.  He  held  his 
head  high  npw  and  started  with  big 
steps  along  the  seashore  to  the  meet- 
ing place.  It  was  where  he  and  Aga- 
memnon had  quarreled. 


Achilles  and  the   War  61 

When  the  chiefs  heard  that  Achilles 
was  there,  they  all  came.  Many  were 
limping  and  leaning  on  their  spears,  for 
their  wounds  were  yet  sore.  Agamem- 
non came  last.  He  walked  very  slowly, 
for  he  was  ill.  They  all  sat  down  on 
the  stone  benches.  Then  Achilles  stood 
up  and  said: 

"Agamemnon,   let    bygones    be    by- 
gones.   I  will  swallow  my  anger.    I  will 
fight  against  the  Trojans." 
And  Agamemnon  answered: 
"I  was  wrong.     Forgive  me  !" 
All  the  chiefs  were  glad  because  these 
great  men  were  friends  again.     The 
soldiers  laughed  and  were  happy  when 
they  ate  their  breakfast  that  morning. 
"We  have  Achilles  back,"  they  kept 
saying. 

CHAPTER  VIII. 

The  Trojans  were  waiting  on  the 
plain.  At  last  the  gates  opened,  and 
the  Greeks  came  out.  When  the  Tro- 
jans saw  Achilles  they  turned  white 
with  fear,  but  every  man  said: 

"We  must  stand  and  fight  this  time/' 


62  Four  Old  Greeks 

So  they  stood  and  fought  their  best. 
Many  spears  broke  through  men's  armor. 
Many  arrows  struck  men's  bodies.  Many 
swords  cut  through  strong  shields. 

"We  are  pushing  the  Trojans  back," 
shouted  the  Greeks  after  a  while. 

And  so  they  were.  Across  the  plain, 
across  the  river,  up  towards  Troy  they 
retreated  slowly,  fighting  hard  all  the 
time.  The  Mighty  Ones  came  down 
from  Olympos  to  help,  but  no  army 
could  make  a  stand  before  Achilles.  He 
was  like  a  terrible  fire  blowing  in  their 
faces. 

The  Trojans  were  near  the  city  now. 
King  Priam  and  the  old  men  and  the 
women  stood  on  the  wall.  Priam  was 
weeping  and  wringing  his  hands.  As 
the  soldiers  came  near,  he  went  to  the 
guards  of  the  gates. 


ACHILLES  CHASING  THE  TROJANS 
His  name  in  Greek  letters  is  below  him. 


Achilles  and  the  War  63 

"Open  the  gates,  quickly!"  he  cried, 
"and  let  my  people  in  to  safety." 

So  they  opened  the  gates,  and  all  the 
Trojan  army  ran  in.  Then  they  closed 
the  gates.  But  Hector  waited  outside. 
On  came  the  whole  Greek  army.  Achil- 
les was  running  far  in  front. 

Priam  was  again  on  the  wall.  He 
stretched  out  his  arms,  and  tears  were 
on  his  cheeks. 

1  ■  Come,  Hector  ! "  he  called.  ' '  Come 
into  the  city.  Do  not  wait  for  Achilles. 
He  is  a  terrible  man." 

But  Hector  did  not  move.  He  watched 
Achilles  come  nearer.  He  heard  the 
clatter  of  his  sword  and  saw  the  long 
stride  of  his  feet. 

"I  cannot  win  against  him,"  he 
thought. 

Yet  he  stood  and  waited.  He  saw 
the  great  muscles  of  Achilles'  arms.  He 
heard  his  breath  whistle  through  his 
nostrils.  He  saw  the  flashing  of  his 
eyes.  Then  Hectors  knees  began  to 
tremble,  and  his  heart  became  sick. 
He  turned  and  ran.  Achilles  followed, 
shouting.      For    a    long    time   the    two 


6+  Four  Old  Greeks 

warriors  ran  back  and  forth  in  front  of 
the  wall.  Achilles  all  the  time  kept  be- 
tween Hector  and  the  gate. 

At  last  Hector  thought  to  himself: 

"I  am  a  coward !" 

He  stopped  and  stood  facing  Achilles. 

"I  will  fight,"  he  shouted. 

Then  they  threw  their  long  spears 
and  swung  their  heavy  swords  at  each 
other,  and  Achilles'  spear  struck  Hector 
dead.  All  the  Trojans  were  on  the 
walls  watching.  When  Hector  fell,  they 
cried  out: 

"We  are  lost!  Now  they  will  burn 
Troy.  We  cannot  save  the  city  with- 
out Hector.  The  Strong  Wall  of  Troy 
has  fallen." 

Achilles  took  Hector  to  his  hut.  He 
was  very  angry  with  him ,  for  having 
killed  Patroklos. 

"Ah,  Hector,"  he  said,  scowling  at  the 
dead  body,  '  'you  shall  never  have  a  great 
mound  over  you  to  do  you  honor.  No 
one  can  put  a  stone  on  your  grave  and 
write  on  it  and  say,  'Here  lies  Hector, 
the  bravest  and  best  man  of  Troy/  But 
I  will  do  these  things  for  Patroklos." 


Achilles  and  the   War  65 

CHAPTER  IX. 

In  the  city  the  Trojans  were  weeping 
for  Hector.  At  last  Priam  called  his 
servants. 

"Yoke  the  mules  to  the  wagon/ '  he 
said.    "Hitch  the  horses  to  my  chariot." 

"What  are  you  going  to  do?"  asked 
his  wife. 

"I  am  going  to  Achilles'  hut,"  he 
answered.  "I  will  ask  him  to  let  me 
bring  Hector  back.  I  want  to  build  a 
mound  for  my  brave  son." 

"O  foolish  Priam!"  cried  his  wife. 
"He  will  kill  you,  too.  He  is  angry 
with  us  all,  but  he  is  most  angry  with 
you  because  you  are  the  king  and  are 
Hectors  father." 

"I  do  not  care  what  happens  to  me," 
said  Priam.  \  *  I  am  going.  Do  not  try 
to  stop  me." 

He  went  to  his  treasure  house  and 
opened  large  chests.  He  took  out  twelve 
robes  of  shining  linen  and  soft  wool, 
purple,  and  yellow,  and  white.  They 
were  trimmed  with  gold  and  silver.  He 
took  also  twelve  cloaks  and  many  other 


66 


Four   Old  Greeks 


pieces  of  fine  cloth,  and  great  piles  of 

gold  and  many  golden  goblets. 

"Put  these  into  the  wagon,"  he  said. 

*  *  I  will  give  them  to  Achilles.     Perhaps 

he  will  not  be  angry  then." 

An  old  serv- 
ant stood  in  the 
wagon  to  drive 
the  mules.  Pri- 
am rode  in  his 
chariot.  He 
started  across 
the  plain  with 
the  wagon  fol- 
lowing him. 
It  was  night. 
Watch-fires 
burned  outside 
the  Greek  wall, 
and  the  sol- 
diers were  on 
guard.  Zeus 
saw  Pri  am 
from  Olympos. 
man  who  stood 


HERMES 

His  name  in  Greek  letters  is  above  his 

staff.    He  has  not  yet  tied  on 

his  winged  sandals. 

He  spoke  to  a  young 
by  him. 

"Hermes,"  he  said, 


go  take   Priam 


Achilles  and  the   War  67 

into  the  Greek  camp.  Let  no  man  see 
him." 

Then  Hermes  flew  through  the  air; 
for  there  were  wings  on  his  sandals. 
He  stopped  by  the  chariot  and  said  : 

"Where  are  you  going,  father?  Why 
are  you  here?  This  is  time  to  sleep. 
Can  I  help  you?" 

Priam  did  not  know  Hermes,  so  he 
said  : 

"I  think  you  are  a  Greek.  Tell  me, 
is  my  son  Hector  in  Achilles'  hut?" 

"I  just  saw  him  there,"  answered 
Hermes. 

"Do  you  know  the  way?" 

"Yes." 

"Will  you  guide  me  to  him?"  asked 
Priam. 

"Most  gladly,"  answered  Hermes. 

He  leaped  into  the  chariot  and  took 
the  reins.  When  they  came  near  the 
wall,  they  could  see  the  guards  there, 
but  Hermes  raised  his  hand  and  the 
men  all  fell  asleep.  Then  he  opened 
the  gates  and  drove  to  Achilles'  hut. 
He  opened  the  gate  in  the  fence  that 
was   around   the   hut,   and   the   chariot 


68  Four  Old  Greeks 

and  the  wagon  drove  in  and  stopped 
near  the  door.  But  Hermes  had  gone, 
and  Priam  went  into  the  hut  alone. 

There  sat  Achilles  and  two  soldiers 
at  the  supper  table.  Their  backs  were 
turned  toward  the  door,  so  they  did  not 
see  Priam  come  in.  He  went  quickly 
and  knelt  on  the  floor  by  Achilles'  chair 
and  put  his  hands  on  Achilles'  knees. 
Achilles  jumped  back  at  the  touch,  and 
when  he  saw  who  it  was,  he  scowled 
and  clinched  his  fists. 

"  Achilles,  think  of  your  own  father," 
Priam  cried.  "He  is  an  old  man  like 
me,  but  he  is  proud  because  he  has  a 
brave  son.  But  I  have  lost  my  brave 
son.  Give  him  back  to  me,  for  your 
father's  sake." 

Tears  came  into  Achilles'  eyes.  He 
was  thinking  of  his  old  father  far 
away. 

■■ '  It  would  break  his  heart  if  I  should 
die,"  Achilles  thought. 

He  took  Priam's  hand  and  raised  him 
from  the  floor. 

"Unhappy  old  man,"  he  said,  "how 
did  you  dare  come  to  the  Greek  camp?" 


Achilles  and  the   War  69 

" Because  I  loved  my  son,"  answered 
Priam. 

"Do  not  weep/'  said  Achilles. 

' '  My  wagon  is  at  your  door,"  answered 
Priam.  "There  are  gifts  in  it.  Will 
you  take  them  and  not  be  angry  with 
me?" 

"I  will  take  them,"  said  Achilles,  "I 
will  not  be  angry,  and  I  will  give  you 
Hector.    Sit,  now,  in  this  chair  and  rest." 

The  servants  took  the  presents  from 
the  wagon.  Achilles  wrapped  two  beau- 
tiful cloaks  about  Hector,  and  put  him 
into  the  wagon  and  went  back  to  the 
hut. 

"Your  son  is  in  your  wagon,  Priam," 
he  said.  ' '  In  the  morning  you  shall  take 
him  home.  But  you  are  tired  and  sick. 
You  shall  eat  and  sleep  in  my  hut  and 
go  back  in  the  morning." 

Then  he  killed  a  white  sheep.  His 
men  roasted  it  over  a  bonfire  before  the 
door,  and  servants  brought  wine  and 
bread.  They  set  these  things  before 
Priam,  and  he  ate  and  drank. 

Achilles  looked  at  him  and  thought: 

"He  is  a  noble  old  man." 


yo      i  Four  Old  Greeks 

And  Priam  looked  at  Achilles  out  of , 
the  corner  of  his  eye  and  thought: 
i    "He  is  a  big  man,  and  a  strong  man, 
and  a  kind  man,  too.      People  do  not 
know  him   when  they   say  that    he    is 
always  cruel.' ' 

When  Priam  had  finished  eating, 
Achilles  said  to  his  men: 

"Spread  soft  rugs  in  the  porch.  You 
shall  sleep  there  until  morning,  Priam. 
And  tell  me,  do  you  wish  to  bury 
Hector  and  build  a  great  mound  in  his 
honor  ?" 

"Yes,"  said  Priam. 

"How  long  will  it  take?"  asked 
Achilles.  "I  will  hold  the  army  back 
from  fighting  until  it  is  done." 

Priam  looked  at  him  in  wonder. 

"Are  you  indeed  willing  to  do  that?" 
he  said.  "If  you  are  willing,  then  let 
us  have  peace  for  eleven  days." 

"It  shall  be  so,"  said  Achilles. 

Then  they  went  to  sleep,  Achilles  in 
the  'hut  and  Priam  in  the  porch.  Early 
in  the  morning,  before  it  was  light, 
Hermes  came  again.  He  waked  Priam 
and  guided  him  home. 


Achilles  and  the   War  71 

When  the  Trojans  saw  Priam  with 
Hector,  driving  slowly  into  town,  they 
cried  in  wonder: 

1 '  Is  it  possible  ?  Can  Achilles  be  kind  ? 
Can  he  forget  his  anger?" 

CHAPTER  X. 

Not  long  after  this  Achilles  died  in 
battle  at  Troy.  And  at  l&st,  after  much 
fighting,  the  Greeks  broke  down  the 
walls  and  burned  the  city.  Even  then 
the  Trojans  remembered  Achilles  and 
said*: 

"He  was  a  better  man  than  these 
are. 

The  Greeks  built  a  great  mound  of 
earth  over  Achilles'  grave.  It  stood  on 
the  shore  for  a  long,  long  time.  When 
sailors  passed  it  they  said: 

"That  is  the  grave  of  Achilles,  the 
bravest  warrior  that  ever  lived." 


HERAKLES 


Herakles  the   Wanderer         73 
HERAKLES  THE  WANDERER 

CHAPTER   I. 

CATTLE  were  grazing  on  a  hill- 
side in  Greece.  The  young 
herder  was  lying  near  on  a  warm 
rock.  The  sun  made  his  red  hair  shine. 
He  was  singing  a  merry  song  in  a 
great  voice.  After  a  while  he  stopped 
singing  and  stretched  out  his  big  arms, 
yawning. 

"O  Father  Zeus/'  he  said,  "this  is 
lazy  work.  To  think  that  I  am  a  son 
of  Zeus!    Yet  here  I  lie  herding  cattle." 

He  sat  up  straight. 

"It  was  not  like  this  in  old  Cheiron's 
cave.  It  was  not  like  this  in  my 
mother's  house.  Brave  men  and  war- 
riors were  there.  But  I  could  beat  them 
all  in  sword  play  and  in  boxing.  Where 
is  my  sword  now?" 

He  felt  at  his  side.  There  was  no 
sword  there,  only  the  leather  belt  of 
his  short,  gray  chiton. 


74  Four   Old  Greeks 

He  looked  at  his  fists. 

"What  are  you  good  for,  my  fists? 
Let  us  see  whether  you  can  work  yet." 

He  jumped  up  like  a  deer  and  ran 
to  a  steep  bank  in  the  hill. 

"Now  show  what  you  can  do,"  he 
shouted. 

He  struck  the  bank  with  his  fists. 
Left,  right,  up,  down!  He  hit  hard. 
The  grass  and  dirt  flew  into  the  air. 
He  laughed  when  he  saw  it.  He  hit 
harder  and  faster.  The  sweat  ran  down 
his  face.  His  breath  came  heavily. 
The  dirt  flew  faster  and  faster.  He 
was  making  a  hole  in  the  bank.  At 
last  he  stopped  and  threw  himself  upon 
the  grass,  laughing  loud  so  that  the 
woods  rang. 

"You  are  beaten,  old  hill!"  he  cried. 
"I  have  not  forgotten  how  to  box.  Oh, 
it  is  pleasant  to  feel  my  muscles  strong!" 

He  looked  at  his  fists  again  and  said 
to  them: 

"But  what  good  have  you  done? 
Were  you  made  only  to  pound  a  hill?" 

He  felt  of  the  great  muscles  on  his 
arms. 


Herakles  the   Wanderer  j$ 

"And  you,  arms!  You  could  squeeze 
lions  to  death.  Why  are  you  not  at 
work?" 

He  looked  at  his  legs.  The  great 
muscles  stood  out  on  them. 

"Lazy  legs!"  he  said.  "Take  me 
into  strange  lands.  Take  me  where 
there  is  work  and  frolic." 

He  looked  off  across  the  country  with 
its  hills  and  small  rivers.  Little  wheat 
fields  and  barley  fields  were  in  the  val- 
leys. Olive  groves  and  vineyards  were 
on  the  hillsides.  Tiny  white  houses 
shone  among  the  fields  and  groves. 

"I  wonder  what  people  are  doing  in 
those  little  houses,"  Herakles  said  to 
himself. 

Just  then  he  saw  a  cart  moving  along 
in  the  road  that  went  past  the  foot  of 
the  hill.  He  walked  down  to  meet  it. 
The  mule  that  was  pulling  it  was  so 
poor  that  every  rib  showed.  He  dragged 
his  'feet,  and  his  ears  hung  down.  A 
man  walked  by  the  cart.  Herakles 
shouted  to  him: 

"Hello,  friend!     What  news?" 

"Bad  news!"  said  the  man. 


76  Four  Old  Greeks 

"Bad  !  Where  are  you  from?"  Hera- 
kles  asked. 

"King  Thespios'  country/'  the  man 
answered. 

"You  are  a  long  way  from  home!" 
Herakles  said. 

"The  farther  the  better!"  tne  man 
growled  out,  frowning. 

"Why,  what  is  the  trouble?"  asked 
Herakles. 

"Our  country  is  ruined,"  the  man 
answered.  "No  crops!  No  hunting! 
Nothing  to  eat !  We  are  starving.  It 
is  the  lion's  fault." 

"What  lion?"  Herakles  asked. 

The  man  looked  at  him  in  wonder. 

"Have  you  not  heard?"  he  said.  "A 
monstrous  lion  is  running  over  our 
country.  He  tramples  our  wheat  fields 
and  makes  his  bed  in  our  barley 
fields.  He  eats  our  sheep  and  cattle. 
Our  people  dare  not  go  out  of  their 
houses.  If  they  do,  he  kills  them.  I 
have  nothing  left  but  this  mule  and 
cart.  The  lion  has  spoiled  everything. 
I  am  trying  to  find  work,  but  nobody 
wants  me." 


Herakles  the  Wanderer         77 

"Why  do  your  people  not  kill  the 
lion?"  Herakles  asked. 

The  man  smiled. 

"Oh!  you  never  have  seen  him,"  he 
said.  "He  is  as  big  as  two  lions.  His 
skin  is  as  thick  as  a  board.  An  arrow 
will  not  go  through  it.  We  cannot 
kill  him.  Apollo  might  do  it,  or  some 
great  son  of  Zeus.     We  cannot." 

How  can  I  get  to  that  country?" 
asked  Herakles. 

The  man  looked  at  him  and  won- 
dered. 

"Do  you  think  of  going  there?"  he 
asked. 

"Yes!"  said  Herakles,  "I  am  going 
to  kill  the  lion!" 

The  man  laughed. 

"Why,  you  are  crazy!"  he  said. 
"Did  I  not  tell  you  how  big  he  is? 
He  has  killed  all  our  strongest  men. 
Besides,  you  have  no  weapons." 

Herakles  held  out  his  arms. 

"Are  not  these  good  weapons?"  he 
asked. 

The  man  looked  at  the  great  arms  and 
then  up  into  Herakles'  face.     Herakles' 


y8  Four   Old  Greeks 


eyes  were  shining.  His  mouth  was 
smiling.     The  man's  eyes  opened  wide. 

" Surely  you  must  be  a  son  of  Zeus," 
he  said.  "You  look  like  him.  I  think 
you  can  kill  the  lion.  I  will  go  back  and 
show  you  the  way." 

Herakles  clapped  him  on  the 
shoulder. 

"Good,  my  friend!"  he  cried.  "Here 
we  go.  Ho,  ho!  Now,  my  arms,  you 
shall  have  work  to  do.  No  lazy  lying 
in  the  sun  now.     Work,  work!" 

Then  he  turned  to  the  man. 

'  *  But  we  must  first  go  to  the  village, 
friend.  I  must  send  some  one  to  watch 
the  cattle." 

So  they  did.  Then  off  down  the  road 
they  went,  Herakles  singing  and  laugh- 
ing. The  mule  walked  behind,  pulling 
the  cart.  This  cart  had  two  wheels  of 
solid  wood.  The  body  of  it  was  like  a 
big  box.     Herakles  looked  back. 

"Poor  starved  mule!"  he  said.  "I 
can  pull  the  cart  better  than  you  can." 

He  quickly  unharnessed  the  mule  and 
lifted  him  into  the  cart,  giving  a  big, 
merry  laugh  as  he  did  it. 


Herakles   the   Wanderer         yg 

"Lie  there/'  he  said.  "See  how  it 
feels  to  ride." 

He  threw  the  harness  into  the  cart. 
Then  he  turned  to  the  man. 

"You,  too,  are  thin  and  tired,"  he 
vsaid.    "In  you  go!" 

Herakles'  strong  arms  lifted  the  man 
as  though  he  were  a  baby  and  set  him 
in  the  cart. 

"That  is  better,"  Herakles  said. 

Then  he  took  hold  of  the  shafts  and 
ran  off  down  the  road,  singing: 

"Better things  to  eat  soon,  my  friends! 
We  will  fill  your  empty  stomachs.  Ho, 
for  the  lion,  the  lion!" 

They  passed  through  many  little  vil- 
lages with  vineyards  and  wheat  fields 
around  them.  People  always  stopped 
work  and  looked  at  this  big  man  and 
his  cart  and  laughed.  Toward  evening 
as  the  strange  party  came  near  a  little 
village,  the  man  said: 

"This  is  in  my  country.  See  the 
wheat  fields!" 

It  seemed  as  if  some  big  animal  had 
rolled  in  them.  No  people  were  about. 
When  Herakles  and  his  cart-load  came 


So  Four   Old  Greeks 

to  the  village,  there  was  no  one  in  the 
lanes.  The  doors  of  the  houses  were 
all  shut. 

"It  is  as  though  everybody  were 
dead,"  said  Herakles. 

He  stopped  before  a  house.  The  front 
wall  was  of  rough  stone,  with  a  door  of 
heavy  logs  in  the  middle  of  it.  Hera- 
kles knocked  on  the  door.  Nobody  came. 
He  knocked  again.  Nobody  came.  He 
turned  to  the  man  in  the  cart  and  said: 

" Perhaps  nobody  lives  here." 

"Yes,"  the  man  said,  "but  they  are 
afraid  of  the  lion." 

Then  Herakles  shook  the  great  door 
and  shouted: 

"Ho,  there!  Let  us  in.  We  are 
friends." 

Then  somebody  from  inside  said: 

"Who  are  you?" 

"  We  are  friends,"  Herakles  answered. 
"Let  us  in." 

"Do  you  see  the  lion?"  asked  the 
man  inside. 

"No,  he  is  not  here.  Open  the  door," 
Herakles  called. 

He  heard  somebody  pulling  back 


Herakles  the  Wanderer         81 

the  great  bolt.  The  door  opened  a  little 
way,  and  a  man  peeped  out.  His  face 
was  white  with  fear.  Herakles  pushed 
the  door  wide  open  and  pulled  the  cart 
in,  saying  as  he  did  so: 

"You  are  too  much  afraid.  This  is 
no  way  to  treat  guests/ ■ 

The  man  of  the  house  was  shutting 
the  door  again. 

"We  have  had  no  guests  for  so 
long!"  he  said.  "The  lion  is  our  only 
guest.' ' 

He  was  looking  at  the  cart-load.  He 
seemed  surprised.  Herakles  saw  it  and 
laughed. 

"Do  not  mules  usually  ride  in  this 
country  ?" 

He  lifted  the  mule  out  and  set  him 
down.  A  few  cattle  and  sheep  were  in 
the  court.  They  were  all  poor.  Her- 
akles walked  among  them  and  rubbed 
their  rough  sides. 

"They  do  not  have  enough  to  eat, 
do  they?"  he  asked. 

"No,"  answered  the  man.  "It  is  the 
lion's  fault.  I  dare  not  let  them  out 
to  grass  for  fear  of  him.     I  have  been 


82  Four  Old  Greeks 

afraid  to  go  out  to  the  fields  to  cut 
oats  and  hay.  So  my  cattle  are  shut  up 
here  and  are  starving,  and  -  so  are  we. 
Oh,  we  are  poor  and  unhappy !" 

Then  he  stopped  and  looked  at  Her- 
akles  and  smiled. 

"But  forgive  me,  stranger/'  he  said. 
"I  have  no  right  to  make  you  unhappy 
with  my  troubles.  Come  into  the  house. 
You  seem  to  have  walked  far,  for  there 
is  dust  on  your  clothes.' ' 

He  led  his  guests  into  the  house  and 
called  aloud: 

"Bring  food.    We  have  guests." 

A  door  at  the  back  of  the  room 
opened,  and  two  women  came  out  with 
faces  white  and  scared.  They  pulled 
out  a  small,  round  table  and  put  upon 
it  a  big  jar  of  milk,  a  basket  of  bread 
and  a  great  vase  of  wine,  and  set  three 
large  red  bowls  by  the  milk.  One 
woman  hung  *the  leg  of  a  lamb  over 
the  fire  to  cook.  She  stood  by  and 
turned  the  meat  while  it  roasted. 

All  this  time  Herakles  was  asking 
about  the  lion  or  telling  of  his  walk 
through  the  country. 


Herakles  the   Wanderer         Sj 

"Oh!  I  do  not  like  these  long  faces," 
he  said.    "Can  we  not  laugh?" 

Then  he  told  a  funny  story.  As  the 
people  listened,  their  eyes  began  to 
shine  again  and  their  lips  to  smile.  It 
was  not  so  much  the  story  as  Herakles' 
good,  happy  voice  and  roaring  laugh 
that  did  it. 

When  the  meat  was  done,  the  woman 
cut  great  pieces  and  laid  them  on  the 
table;  for  there  was  no  table-cloth  and 
no  plates.  Then  the  man  of  the  house 
said : 

"Come,  friends,  sit  and  eat." 

Herakles  found  his  bowl  full  of  milk. 
He  drank  it  off  in  three  swallows.  He 
ate  great  pieces  of  meat  and  bread, 
and  the  women  brought  more  of  every- 
thing.     They  said   among   themselves: 

"He  eats  like  a  lion.  He  must  have 
walked  far  to-day.  And  he  is  very  big. 
He  needs  much  to  eat." 

And  all  the  time  Herakles  was  laugh- 
ing and  joking.  It  made  the  other  peo- 
ple laugh  to  hear  him. 

"  It  is  a  long  time  since  we  have  been 
merry,"  the  man  of  the  house  said. 


84  Four   Old  Greeks 

At  last  Herakles  put  down  his  bowl. 

■  •  Thank  you,  friend,"  he  said  with 
his  big  voice.  "I  was  hungry.  The 
food    was   good.     Now,    where    is    your 

Hon?" 

1 '  He  was  last  seen  in  the  forest,  a 
mile  away." 

Then  they  heard  a  great  noise  that 
shook  the  house.   All  the  people  jumped. 

"That  is  the  lion,"  they  said.  "He 
is  roaring." 

Herakles  laughed. 

"Good,  good!"  he  shouted.  "He  is 
calling  me.     Good-by,  friends." 

He  started  for  the  door,  but  the  man 
of  the  house  caught  his  arm. 

"What  do  you  mean?"  he  cried. 
"Do  not  go  near  him.  He  will  kill 
you." 

Herakles   looked    down   at   his   host. 

"Do  you  think  he  will  kill  me?"  he 
laughed. 

When  he  said  it  he  lifted  the  man 
in  his  arms. 

"See.   Do  you  think  he  will  kill  me?" 

He  set  the  man  down  and  laughed 
again.     Then  out  he  strode  through  the 


Herakles  the   Wanderer  85 

door.    The  women  cried  when  they  saw 
him  go,  but  the  man  said: 

"He  has  strong  arms.     Perhaps — " 

CHAPTER   II. 

So  Herakles  came  to  the  forest  and 
walked  among  the  trees,  looking  about. 

"Where  shall  I  find  him?"  he  was 
thinking. 

All  at  once  he  stopped.  There  was 
the  lion.  He  was  crouching,  ready  to 
jump.  He  was  snarling  and  showing  his 
sharp  teeth.  He  was  swinging  his  tail 
and  glaring  at  Herakles. 

Quickly  Herakles  took  hold  of  a  young 
oak  tree.  He  pulled,  and  up  it  came  by 
the  roots.  He  swung  it  like  a  club  and 
hit  the  lion  with  it  many  times.  But 
the  great  lion  crouched  on  the  ground 
and  kept  crawling  nearer  and  nearer. 
He  came  so  close  that  Herakles  could 
no  longer  use  his  club  and  he  threw  it 
away.  At  that  minute  the  lion  jumped. 
But  Herakles  was  too  quick  for  him. 
He  caught  the  beast  in  his  strong  arms 
and  crushed  the  great  ribs  and  threw 


86  Four  Old  Greeks 

him  to  the  ground,  dead.  Then  he  sat 
down  to  take  breath.  He  was  panting, 
and  sweat  was  rolling  down  his  face. 
He  looked  at  the  oak  tree  that  he  had 
torn  up. 

"You  were  a  good  club,"  he  said.  "I 
will  keep  you." 

He  looked  at  the  dead  lion. 

"I  will  take  you  to  the  village,"  he 
laughed.  "The  people  will  be  glad  to 
see  you  dead." 

He  threw  the  great  lion  over  his 
shoulder  and  dragged  the  tree  behind 
him.  So  he  walked  through  the  forest 
and  down  the  lane  of  the  village,  sing- 
ing loud  as  he  went: 

"Oh,  ho!  He  is  dead.  The  lion  is 
dead.  Do  not  be  afraid.  Come  out,  you 
people;  come  out  and  see  the  lion  dead." 

The  people  in  their  houses  heard  him. 
They  said  to  one  another: 

"That  is  a  good  voice.  But  it  can- 
not be  true.  Surely  no  one  has  killed 
the  lion." 

They  opened  their  doors  just  a  little 
and  peeped  out.  Then  they  shut  the 
doors  quickly.     Their  faces  were  white 


Herakles  the   Wanderer         87 

and  scared.      They  said  to  the  people 
behind  them: 

1  'A  terrible  thing  !  A  lion  is  dragging 
a  tree.     It  talks/ ' 

They  looked  again.  They  stepped 
out  of  the  doorways.  They  called  back 
to  those  in  the  house: 

"No!  It  is  a  man.  He  has  killed 
the  lion.     Come  out.     The  lion  is  dead." 

So  all  the  people  ran  to  Herakles, 
shouting : 

• '  Hail,  hail !  brave  stranger !  Is  he 
dead?    Is  the  lion  really  dead?" 

They  cried  because  they  were  so  glad. 

"How  did  you  do  it?"  they  asked 
Herakles.    "Wonderful!   Wonderful!" 

They  put  their  hands  on  his   arms. 

"Your  arms  are  strong,"  they  said. 
"What  is  your  name?" 

"Herakles,"  he  told  them. 

Then  they  said  : 

"Let  us  have  a  feast  for  Herakles. 
Let  us  have  it  out  of  doors  in  the  sun- 
shine.   It  is  so  long  since  we  played  out 
of  doors !    But  we  need  not  fear  the  lion 
now." 

So  they  had  a  great   feast  there  in 


88  Four  Old  Greeks 

the  lane  of  the  village.  All  the  people 
came.  They  sang  and  danced  around 
Herakles  and  threw  flowers  at  him. 
They  brought  him  oranges  and  grapes 
and  pomegranates  and  piled  them  beside 
him. 

"Eat!"  they  said.  "A  big  man  must 
eat.     A  man  who  kills  lions  must  eat." 

They  brought  great  red  bowls  of 
milk. 

"Drink!"  they  said;  "surely  the  hard 
fight  made  you  thirsty." 

They  brought  whole  legs  of  roasted 
lamb  and  roasted  pig.  And  all  the  time 
Herakles  sat  and  laughed. 

"I  am  glad  to  see  you  happy,  friends," 
he  said.  "But  I  cannot  eat  all  this.  I 
have  had  enough.  Get  me  an  ax  now. 
I  will  make  my  club  better." 

Every  man  ran  and  brought  an  ax. 

"One  is  enough,"  Herakles  laughed. 

He  chopped  off  the  top  of  the  tree, 
and  the  roots,  and  made  the  club  round 
at  the  lower  end.  Then  he  lifted  it  and 
swung  it  about  his  head.  The  people 
stepped  back;  for  they  were  a  little 
afraid. 


Herakles  the  Wanderer         8g 

"He  is  very  big  and  strong/'  they 
thought. 

Herakles  saw  that  they  were  afraid. 
So  he  laughed  and  said: 

"This  has  been  a  merry  feast,  friends. 
And  what  will  you  do  with  the  lion 
there?" 

"We  will  give  the  skin  to  you, 
Herakles,"  they  answered.  "It  would 
make  you  a  good  cloak.  You  are  like 
a  lion." 

So  they  took  off  the  skin. 

"Now  you  must  stay  with  us,  Her- 
akles, while  we  tan  the  hide  and  make 
your  cloak,"  they  said. 

"Yes!"  one  man  cried,  "stay  with  me. 
I  have  a  big  house." 

"No,"  said  another  man,  "stay  with 
me.     We  want  you." 

"Oh,  come  to  my  house,  Herakles," 
another  pleaded. 

And  so  everyone  wanted  him.  Her- 
akles laughed. 

"I  see  a  wheat  field  over  there.  It 
is  not  all  spoiled.  It  needs  cutting.  I 
will  stay  with  the  man  who  owns  that 
field." 


go  Four  Old  Greeks 

So  Herakles  stayed  there  for  a  few 
days  and  helped  all  the  men  cut  their 
wheat. 

"  Herakles  can  do  more  work  than 
twenty  men,"  the  people  said.  "He  cuts 
wheat  as  though  he  were  killing  lions." 

At  last  the  cloak  was  ready,  and  all 
the  people  came  together.  They  threw 
the  skin  over  Herakles'  shoulders.  The 
lion's  head  was  like  a  helmet  for  him. 
He  tied  the  front  legs  under  his  chin. 
The  hind  feet  just  touched  the  ground 
and  the  tail  dragged  behind. 

"A  lion  walking  on  his  hind  legs!" 
the  people  laughed. 

"He  has  far  to  go,"  Herakles  replied, 
"so  good-by,  friends!  If  you  ever  need 
me  again,  send  for  me." 

He  threw  the  club  over  his  shoulder 
and  started  down  the  road.  The  people 
ran  after  him,  shouting: 

"Good-by,  Herakles!  May  Zeus  love 
you  and  help  you!" 


Herakles  the   Wanderer 


9' 


/                              1*^.  A 

li\*\ 

/iy      yr^'^i 

aeJ^  \ 

nrsd    \ 

l&^Q — 'jy^^^l 

1  8   1 

kQv  £«/2pai^ 

m  %>    ) 

\        vm  v^-^w^P- 

1 11  "^  / 

MKK 

81  7 

CHAPTER  III. 

So  Herakles  went  through  the  coun- 
try. At  last  he  came  to  his  mothers 
house.  He  went 
through  the  gate 
and  down  through 
the  court  and  into 
the  house.  His 
mother  was  sit- 
ting by  the  fire 
weeping.  She  did 
not  see  Herakles. 
He   went    up    to 

her      SOftly      and     Tnis  $icture  &  from  an  old  Greek  coin. 

knelt  on  the  floor  and  put  his  arms 
around  her. 

"What  is  the  matter,  little  mother ?" 
he  asked. 

"O,  Herakles!  is  it  you?"  she  cried. 

She  put  her  hands  on  his  face  and 
kissed  him. 

' '  I  have  been  longing  for  you,  my 
son.  I  was  very  lonely.  Your  father 
is  up  in  Olympos,  so  I  almost  never 
see  him,  and  you  have  been  away  so 
long!" 


92  Four  Old  Greeks 

"I  will  stay  with  you  now.  We  will 
have  a  merry  time,"  said  Herakles. 

Then  his  mother  noticed  the  lion's 
skin  and  she  drew  away,  afraid. 

u  What  is  this,  Herakles?"  she  asked. 

Herakles  laughed. 

"Oh,  I  killed  this  lion.  Does  he  not 
make  a  good  cloak?" 

His  mother  looked  at  him  with  smil- 
ing eyes. 

"To  think  that  you  used  to  be  my 
little  baby,  you  killer  of  lions!"  she 
said. 

Herakles  stayed  with  his  mother  for 
a  long  time  and  filled  the  house  with 
his  laughter  and  merry  songs.  One 
day  he  came  in  from  out  of  doors. 

"Mother,"  he  said,  "I  have  been 
sitting  on  a  hill,  where  I  could  look  far 
off.  I  saw  men  working  in  wheat  fields 
with  sickles,  and  other  men  working 
in  fields  with  hoes.  Their  backs  were 
bent  with  the  hard  work.  I  saw  forests, 
where  I  know  there  are  lions.  There  is 
much  to  be  done,  mother.  Other  men 
work,  but  I  am  playing  here  at  home. 
I  must  not  stay  any  longer.     There  is 


Herakles  the   Wanderer         93 

labor  for  my  big  arms.  I  will  leave 
you  with  the  king.  He  will  take  good 
care  of  you.  I  will  go  to  Delphi  and 
ask  Apollo  what  to  do.  He  knows 
everything  and  he  will  tell  me  what 
is  right.     Shall  I  do  it,  mother?" 

His  mother  looked  at  him.  There 
was  love  in  her  eyes.  She  was  proud 
of  him. 

"  Yes,  my  son,  go.    People  need  you." 
So  on  the  next  day  Herakles  went 
to  Delphi. 

CHAPTER  IV. 

Delphi  was  a  lonely  place  among 
bare,  steep  mountains.  There  was  a 
great  crack  in  the  ground  where  smoke 
and  gas  came  out.  A  house  of  Apollo 
was  over  the  crack.  A  priestess  lived 
here,  and  Apollo  used  to  talk  with  her. 
Apollo  knew  everything  and  he  loved 
'1  men  and  told  them  what  to  do. 

Herakles  went  into  the  temple.  A 
priest  met  him. 

"Ask  Apollo  what  I  shall  do,"  Her- 
akles said. 


94  Four  Old  Greeks 

The  man  went  into  another  room  and 
brought  out  the  priestess  in  her  long 
white  robe.  He  took  a  stool  and  set  it 
over  the  crack  in  the  rock.  Here  the 
priestess  sat  and  breathed  the  smoke 
and  gas.  Apollo,  up  in  the  sky,  had 
heard  the  question  and  saw  his  priest- 
ess sitting  there.  In  some  wonderful 
way  he  made  her  know  how  to  answer. 
She  said  some  strange  words  that  Her- 
akles  could  not  understand,  but  the 
priest  told  him  what  they  meant. 

11  Apollo  says  that  you  must  go  to 
King  Eurystheus  and  do  everything 
that  the  king  tells  you  to  do." 

Herakles  went  out  of  the  temple  and 
sat  down  on  a  rock  to  think.  He  had 
not  expected  this  answer.  He  knew 
Eurystheus  well.  They  were  cousins, 
but  they  did  not  like  each  other.  He 
thought : 

1 '  Must  I  be  Eurystheus'  servant  ?  He 
is  a  coward.  He  is  mean.  He  will  scold 
at  me.     He  will  never  let  me  rest." 

Herakles  thought  for  a  long  time. 
At  last  he  struck  his  leg  angrily. 

"I   will    not    go!"  he   said.     "I   will 


Herakles  the   Wanderer         95 

wander  over  the  world  instead.  That 
will  be  fun.  I  shall  see  many  strange 
things  and  meet  many  wonderful  peo- 
ple.   That  will  be  a  gay  life/' 

He  started  off  swinging  his  club. 
Then  he  stopped. 

"But  Apollo  knows  best,"  he  thought. 
"He  knows  what  I  ought  to  do.  And 
why  do  I  not  want  to  be  a  servant  to 
Eurystheus?  Is  it  because  I  am  lazy? 
Am  I  afraid  of  his  hard  words?  Per- 
haps he  has  something  that  must  be 
done  and  needs  my  help.  That  must 
be  why  Apollo  sent  me.  He  knows 
best.     I  will  go." 

And  off  he  went  singing  : 

1 '  More  work  for  you,  my  arms ! 
Long  walks  for  you,  my  legs  ! " 

So  he  came  singing  to  King  Eurys- 
theus' house.  He  went  along  the  path 
and  through  the  court  and  into  the 
great  room.  There  sat  the  king.  He 
was  a  little  man  with  thin,  black  hair. 
He  always  hung  his  head  as  though 
he  were  ashamed.  His  eyes  were  little 
and  black,  and  he  looked  out  of  the 
corners  of  them.     He  jumped  when  he 


g6  Four  Old  Greeks 

saw  Herakles  in  the  door.  Herakles 
walked  up  to  the  king  and  said: 

"Well,  cousin  Eurystheus,  I  have 
come  to  help  you.  Apollo  sent  me. 
What  shall  I  do?" 

"Go  kill  the  hydra!"  Eurystheus 
snapped  out. 

"A  hydra?"  Herakles  said.  "It  is 
an  ugly  thing,  but  I  will  kill  it  Where 
is  your  hydra,  cousin?" 

Eurystheus  nodded  to  a  servant. 

"Go  show  him,"  he  said. 

So  the  servant  showed  Herakles  the 
way.  Herakles  went  singing  down  the 
road,  jumping  over  bushes  and  running 
races  with  wild  rabbits.  He  acted  as 
though  he  were  going  to  play  a  game 
instead  of  to  kill  a  horrible  monster. 

He  walked  all  day.  At  night  he 
came  to  a  house  and  knocked  at  the 
door.     A  woman  opened  it. 

"Will  you  take  a  stranger  in?"  Her- 
akles asked.     "I  am  hungry  and  tired." 

"Certainly,"  she  said.    "Come  in." 

She  led  him  into  the  house.  She 
put  a  soft  cushion  into  a  chair. 

"Sit  here  and  rest,"  she  said  to  him. 


Herakles  the   Wanderer         97 

Then  she  got  a  basin  of  cool  water 
and  washed  his  feet  that  were  dusty 
and  tired  and  sore  from  the  long  tramp. 
After  that  she  pulled  out  a  little  round 
table  and  set  upon  it  a  basket  of  bread 
and  a  bowl  of  milk.     Then  she  said: 

"Come,  stranger,  eat  and  drink.  I 
cannot  give  you  a  fine  feast,  for  we 
are  poor.  We  used  to  have  wheat  and 
wine  in  our  store-room  and  sheep  and 
cattle  in  our  barn.  But  they  are  all 
gone  now.  The  hydra  lives  in  the 
swamp  below  us.  His  breath  is  poison, 
and  it  fills  the  air.  It  has  killed  all 
our  cattle,  and  now  my  husband  is  sick 
from  it.  He  has  not  been  able  to  cut 
our  wheat,  and  it  has  gone  to  waste. 
All  our  neighbors  are  sick,  too,  and  can- 
not help  us." 

"So  this  is  where  the  hydra  lives?" 
Herakles  said.  "Good!  I  came  to  kill 
it.  Your  husband  shall  be  well.  Is  he 
alone  now?" 

"Yes." 

"Perhaps  he  would  like  company," 
Herakles  said.  "Let  us  go  and  talk 
with  him." 


g8  Four  Old  Greeks 

So  Herakles  drank  the  bowl  of  milk 
in  three  swallows. 

"  Never  mind  the  bread  now,"  he 
said.    "  Let  us  go." 

The  man  was  lying  on  a  couch.  His 
face  was  hot  with  fever.  Herakles  put 
his  big,  cool  hand  on  the  man's  face 
and  pushed  the  hair  from  his  forehead. 
He  said  with  his  great  voice  : 

"Well,  friend,  do  you  like  your  couch 
so  much  that  you  must  lie  on  it  all  the 
time?" 

Then  ne  laughed.  The  man  looked 
up  at  him. 

"It  sounds  good  to  hear  a  laugh," 
he  said. 

"You  will  all  be  laughing  in  a  day 
or  two,"  Herakles  answered. 

He  sat  by  the  man  for  a  while  and 
told  him  stories  and  made  him  laugh. 
He  sang,  too,  and  his  big  voice  made 
the  roof  ring.     At  last  he  said: 

"Now  I  will  sleep.  To-morrow  some- 
thing will  happen." 

As  soon  as  the  sun  rose  in  the  morn- 
ing Herakles  was  up.  He  drank  a  bowl 
of  milk,  then  off  he  went. 


Herakles  the  Wanderer  gg 

It  was  a  hard  thing  to  kill  the  hydra. 
It  was  like  a  great  snake  with  a  hun- 
dred heads.  It  lived  in  deep  mud.  All 
day  Herakles  fought  with  it.  The  hydra 
bit  him,  and  the  mud  held  his  feet,  so 
that  he  had  to  pull  and  strike  at  once. 
The  sun  was  hot  and  burned  his  face. 
But  at  last  the  hydra  was  dead.  Hera- 
kles walked  out  of  the  swamp  and 
threw  himself  upon  the  grass,  too 
tired  to  stand.  He  lay  there  all  night. 
In  the  morning  he  was  stiff.  His  legs, 
and  arms,  and  back  ached.  But  when 
he  sat  up  he  saw  the  dead  hydra  and 
he  forgot  his  backache  and  laughed 
with  joy. 

1 'Now  the  sick  people  will  be  well. 
But  I  must  go  back.  Perhaps  Eurys- 
theus  has  something  else  for  me  to  do." 

So  he  walked  up  the  road.  He 
stopped  at  the  house  where  he  had 
slept.     The  woman  came  to  the  door. 

"How  is  your  husband?"  Herakles 
asked. 

"He  is  much  better,"  the  woman 
answered.  "I  thought  you  must  have 
killed  the  hydra.     Did  you?" 


ioo  Four  Old  Greeks 

" Yes, "said  Herakles;  "do  I  not  look 
like  it?" 

His  legs  and  arms  were  muddy.  His 
lion's  skin  cloak  was  dirty.  His  clothes 
were  torn.  His  red  hair  was  rough  and 
damp  with  dew. 

Tears  came  to  the  woman's  eyes. 

"You  did  that  hard  thing  for  us!" 
she  said.  "Surely  you  must  be  some 
son  of  Zeus.  Perhaps  you  are  Herakles 
who  killed  the  lion." 

"Yes,"  Herakles  said,  and  laughed  in 
wonder.    "Did  you  hear  about  that?" 

The  woman's  eyes  opened  wide. 

"Herakles?"  she  cried.  "The  good 
and  brave!    Is  Herakles  in  my  house?" 

She  ran  to  her  husband's  bed. 

"Herakles  is  here,"  she  said.  "He 
has  killed  the  hydra." 

"Go  tell  the  neighbors,"  she  said  to 
her  little  son.    "Tell  them  to  come." 

So  the  little  boy  ran. 

The  woman  hurried  to  the  cistern 
in  the  court.  She  filled  a  kettle  with 
water  and  hung  it  over  the  fire  in  the 
big  room.  She  pulled  out  a  bronze  tub 
from   a  corner   and   set  a  red  vase   of 


Herakles   the   Wand'eYer        101 

olive  oil  by  it.  She  took  the  lion's 
skin  away  and  cleaned  it.  Then  she 
got  a  new  chiton  and  laid  it  ready  for 
Herakles  to  wear.  When  the  water 
was  warm  she  filled  the  tub. 

"Come,  bathe,"  she  said. 

So  Herakles  bathed  and  oiled  himself 
and  put  on  the  clean  chiton. 

Soon  the  neighbors  began  to  come. 
They  brought  meat  and  vases  of  milk 
and  wine  in  great  skin  bottles.  They 
cooked  the  meat  and  spread  a  feast. 
The  house  was  full  of  busy  people. 
And  all  the  time  they  were  looking  at 
Herakles  and  talking  about  him. 

"Is  he  not  big?"  one  said. 

"How  kind  his  blue  eyes  are!"  an- 
other said. 

Some  sat  by  him  and  talked. 

"How  did  you  do  it?"  they  asked. 

"Oh,  I  hardly  know,"  laughed  the 
great  hero. 

' '  Our  people  are  all  beginning  to  get 
well,"  they  told  him. 

Herakles  smiled  and  his  big  eyes 
shone. 

"Are  they?    Oh,  I  am  glad!"  he  said. 


This  is  the  zvay  Herakles  raised  the  cup  of  wine  before  he  poured 
it  upon  the  fire. 


Herakles  the  Wanderer       ioj 

"Let  us  thank  Zeus  for  that.  He 
always  helps  me.     He  is  my  father." 

So  he  took  a  bowl  of  wine  to  a  little 
stone  altar  that  stood  in  the  court.  A 
fire  was  burning  on  it.  He  poured  the 
wine  upon  the  fire,  and  other  men  put 
meat  on.  Herakles  raised  his  hands  to 
the  sky. 

"O,  Father  Zeus!"  he  said.  "You 
helped  us.  We  love  you  for  it.  We 
burn  this  meat  and  wine  in  thanks  to 
you." 

Then  all  the  people  feasted  together 
and  laughed  and  sang  and  shouted  for 
Herakles. 

"If  we  are  ever  sick  again,"  they  said, 
"we  will  ask  you  to  help  us,  Herakles." 

"I  will  come  gladly,"  Herakles  re- 
plied. 

At  last  he  bade  them  good-by  and 
started  back  to  Eurystheus'  house.  It 
was  a  long  walk.  The  roads  were  dusty 
and  the  sun  was  hot.  Herakles  grew 
tired  and  hungry.     He  thought: 

"Soon  I  shall  be  at  Eurystheus' 
house.  It  will  be  good  to  feel  warm 
water  on  my  feet.     It  will  be  pleasant 


104  Four  Old  Greeks 

to  sit  on  a  soft  cushion.  Hot  meat  and 
cool  wine  will  taste  good/' 

At  last  he  came  to  Eurystheus'  house. 
Eurystheus  was  sitting  at  a  table  eat- 
ing. He  did  not  smile  to  see  Herakles. 
He  did  not  call  the  servant  to  wash  his 
feet.  He  did  not  ask  him  to  sit  at  the 
table.  Instead  he  looked  at  him  out  of 
the  corners  of  his  eyes  and  said: 

"Are  you  back?  There  is  a  wild  stag 
up  north,  with  golden  horns.  Go  catch 
him.     Bring  him  to  me  alive.     Go!" 

So  Herakles  turned  and  walked  away. 

"Well,  my  legs,"  he  said,  "no  rest 
for  you.  But  never  mind.  We  shall 
see  a  stag  with  golden  horns." 

Soon  Herakles  forgot  about  being 
tired  and  hungry.  He  was  watching 
the  clouds  and  listening  to  the  wind  in 
the  trees.     He  sang: 

"Oh,  it  is  great  to  be  out  of  doors. 
The  sunshine  is  good.     Oh,  ho!  oh,  ho!" 

It  took  Herakles  a  year  to  catch  the 
stag.  Then  Eurystheus  sent  him  off  to 
do  something  else.  Herakles  did  it  and 
came  back.  Then  Eurystheus  sent  him 
again.     And  so  it  was  for  twelve  years. 


Herakles  the   Wanderer        105 

Herakles  had  no  time  to  rest.  He  was 
working  all  the  while.  The  hard  work 
made  wrinkles  come  in  his  forehead. 
His  arms  and  legs  grew  stronger.  A 
curly  red  beard  grew  on  his  chin.  But 
his  blue  eyes  stayed  merry,  and  the 
good  smile  still  played  about  his  mouth. 
He  sang  as  he  walked  along  the  road. 
He  made  everybody  that  he  saw  happy. 

CHAPTER  V. 


One  day  Herakles  was  walking  across 
a  sandy  plain.    There  were  no  trees  and 


A  GREEK  BOWMAN 


io6 


Four  Old  Greeks 


no  grass.  The  sun  blazed  down  very 
hot.  The  sweat  rolled  off  Herakles' 
face.  He  held  his  lion's  skin  in  his 
hand  and  dragged  it  along  the  ground 
because  it  was  too  hot  to  wear  it.  At 
last  he  threw  down  his  club  and  the 
lion's  skin. 

"I  cannot  go  on,"  he  cried  out 
angrily.    "It  is  too  hot." 

He  looked  up  at  the  sun. 

" Apollo!"  he  shouted,  "you  have  no 
right  to  fry  me.  You  are  too  hot.  You 
want  to  kill  me.     Stop  it!" 

He  shook  his  fist  at  the  sun. 

"Do  you  hear  me?"  he  shouted.  "I 
cannot  see  you,  but  you  are  there." 

He  was  carry  - 


HERAKLES  AND  HIS  BOW 
From  an  old  Greek  coin. 


ing  a  bow  and  a 
quiver  of  arrows. 
He  set  an  arrow 
in  his  bow  and 
aimed  at  the  sun 
and  pulled  the 
string  far  back. 
All  that  time  he 
was  talking. 
"It  is  easy  for 


Herakles  the   Wanderer       ioy 

you !  You  ride  in  a  golden  chariot.  You 
are  up  among  the  cool  breezes.  I  am 
plodding  down  here  in  the  sand.  Stop 
burning  me,  I  say." 

Twang!  went  the  bow-string.  The 
arrow  flew  into  the  sky.  Apollo  had 
been  looking  down  at  Herakles.  He 
saw  the  arrow  and  laughed. 

"Did  he  think  he  could  hit  me?"  he 
said  to  himself.  "He  is  a  funny  fel- 
low. But  he  is  a  merry  fellow,  and  that 
was  well  shot.  It  flew  higher  than  any 
other  arrow  I  ever  saw.  He  deserves  a 
good  bow." 

Apollo  took  his  own  silver  bow  from 
his  shoulder  and  dropped  it.  Down 
through  the  air  it  fell.  Herakles  thought 
it  was  a  flash  of  lightning.  But  the 
bow  lay  on  the  sand  at  his  feet.  He 
picked  it  up. 

"Apollo's  bow!"  he  said.  "He  has 
given  it  to  me." 

He  stretched  out  his  hands  to  the 
sun. 

"I  thank  you,  Apollo,  I  thank  you." 

Then  he  thought: 

"Perhaps  Apollo  is  hungry  and  tired 


108  Four   Old  Greeks 

from  his  long  ride.  What  can  I  do  for 
him?" 

He  saw  a  big  bird  flying.  He  shot  it. 
Then  he  made  a  little  mound  of  sand. 

"This  shall  be  Apollo's  altar,"  he 
said  to  himself. 

He  built  a  fire  upon  the  altar  and 
put  half  of  the  bird  into  the  fire.  Then 
he  raised  his  hands  to  the  sun. 

"Q,  Apollo!  I  have  made  here  a  little 
feast  in  your  honor.  The  sweet  smell 
is  going  up  to  you.  I  hope  that  it  will 
make  you  strong.  I  send  m}^  love  up 
with  the  sweet  smell." 

Then  he  sat  and  ate  the  other  half 
of  the  bird. 

Apollo  liked  the  odor  from  the  altar. 

"There  is  a  kind-hearted  man!"  he 
thought.  "It  must  be  hot  down  there 
in  the  sand.     Poor  fellow!" 

Then  Apollo  drew  a  cloud  in  front 
of  his  chariot,  and  Herakles  walked  in 
a  cool  shadow  all  day.  And  all  day 
Apollo  kept  thinking  about  Herakles 
and  his  arrow  and  laughing  about  it. 

"He  is  a  merry  fellow,"  he  thought. 


Herakles  the  Wanderer        iog 

CHAPTER   VI. 

So  for  twelve  years  Herakles  was 
Eurystlleus,  servant.  He  walked  all 
over  the  world  and  did  a  thousand 
wonderful  things.  At  last  Eurystheus 
could  think  of  nothing  else  for  him  to 
do,  so  he  said: 

"You  may  go.  I  do  not  want  you 
any  longer/' 

Herakles  passed  his  hand  over  his 
red  hair. 

"Thank  you,  cousin/'  he  said.  "Then 
I  will  rest  little." 

He  went  home  to  his  mother  and  his 
wife  and  his  little  children.  They  cried 
with  joy  when  they  saw  him. 

"Ah,  Herakles,"  they  said,  "it  is  fine 
to  have  you  at  home  again." 

For  a  while  they  had  merry  times 
together.     But  one  day  Herakles  said: 

"I  must  go  away  again.  I  have 
been  idle  too  long.  There  still  is  work 
for  me  to  do." 

So  he  kissed  his  family  good-by  and 
went  away.  All  over  the  world  he  went 
singing  and  working. 


no  Four  Old  Greeks 

Once  Herakles  was  at  a  little  city, 
Olympia,  resting  from  some  great  deed. 
He  said  to  the  people: 

"My  muscles  are  aching  for  a  game, 
friends.     Let  us  have  some  sport.' ' 

And  everybody  shouted: 

"Yes,  games!  Go  tell  all  the  people." 

So  men  ran  all  over  the  country. 

"Come  to  Olympia  to-morrow,"  they 
shouted  to  everybody.  "There  will  be 
games.  Come  show  how  well  you  can 
wrestle  and  box.  Herakles  will  be  there. 
Come." 

On  the  next  day  the  plain  was  full 
of  people  in  their  gayest  clothes.  There 
was  an  empty  space  in  the  middle  of 
the  plain.  Herakles  walked  into  it.  He 
had  thrown  off  his  chiton,  so  the  people 
could  see  his  big  muscles. 

"He  looks  strong,"  they  said.  "How 
straight  he  stands!  He  walks  like  a 
lion." 

Herakles  shouted: 

"Who  will  come  wrestle  with  me?" 

A  big  man  with  black  hair  and  beard 
and  fierce  eyes  stepped  out. 

"I  will,"  he  said. 


Herakles  the   Wanderer        in 

"Dry as,  the  robber !"  the  people  said 
to  one  another.  "Oh,  may  Herakles  win! 
But  no  one  ever  did  win  against  Dry  as/ ' 

Dryas  threw  off  his  chiton.  He  and 
Herakles  stood  face  to  face.  One  was 
as  big  as  the  other.  The  people  were 
very  still.  All  at  once  Herakles  jumped 
and  caught  Dryas  around  the  waist. 
He  tried  to  throw  him  down.  He 
pushed  and  pushed,  but  Dryas  put  his 
hands  on  Herakles'  shoulders  and  stood 
like  a  rock.  They  stood  locked  so  for 
a  whole  minute.  Then  Herakles'  foot 
flew  out  quickly  and  he  tripped  Dryas 
and  threw  him  to  the  ground.  At  that 
the  people  shouted: 

"Herakles!" 

But  quickly  Dryas  was  on  his  feet 
and  had  caught  Herakles.  He  pushed 
and  pushed,  but  Herakles  stood  like  a 
rock.  Dryas  struck  out  with  his  foot, 
but  Herakles  was  too  quick.  He  caught 
Dryas  by  the  shoulders  and  threw  him. 
The  people  shouted  again: 

"Herakles!  Herakles  will  win!" 

But  Dryas  pulled  Herakles  down. 
The   two   men   rolled    on    the    ground. 


ii2  Four   Old  Greeks 

Each  tried  to  get  up,  but  the  other  held 
him  down.  At  last  Herakles  jerked  him- 
self free  and  sprang  to  his  feet.  The 
people  cheered. 

"Stand  up,  Dryas,"  Herakles  said. 

So  Dryas  stood  up,  and  they  wrestled 
again.  They  worked  hard.  The  people 
could  hear  them  breathe  and  see  the 
sweat  roll  down  their  bodies.  Soon 
Herakles  threw  Dryas  again.  Then  the 
people  said: 

"  Herakles  has  won.  He  has  thrown 
Dryas  three  times." 

Dryas  got  up  slowly.  He  looked  at 
Herakles  from  head  to  foot. 

"You  are  a  better  man  than  I  am," 
he  said. 

"Dryas,  your  arms  are  too  strong  to 
be  wasted  in  robbing  men,"  Herakles 
replied.  "Do  good  work  with  them. 
There  are  lions  and  monsters  to  be 
killed.     Go  kill  them." 

Dryas  thought  for  a  minute.  Then 
he  raised  his  head  high. 

"I  will  do  it,"  he  said. 

And  he  went  away  and  did  it. 

Then  Herakles  looked  around. 


Herakles  the   Wanderer        iij 

"Who  will  run  with  me?"  he  cried. 

"I  will,"  and  out  ran  a  dozen  young 
men. 

They  threw  off  their  chitons  and 
lined  up  for  the  start.  The  people 
watched  them. 

"The  young  men  will  win,"  they  said. 
"They  are  slender  and  light.  Herakles 
is  heavy  and  thick.  They  will  run 
better." 

But  they  did  not.  Herakles'  legs 
were  long,  and  strong  muscles  were  in 
them.  He  knew  just  how  to  use  his 
legs,  for  they  had  carried  him  all  over 
the  world.  They  had  chased  a  wild  stag 
for  a  year.  So  now  he  won  the  race, 
and  the  people  were  glad  and  shouted. 

Then  there  was  a  boxing  match. 
Herakles  won  that  easily.  Then  men 
threw  spears  at  a  mark.  Herakles  was 
beaten  at  that.     The  people  said: 

"Herakles  is  not  a  soldier.  The 
spear  is  not  his  weapon.  The  club  is 
his  weapon,  or  the  bow  and  arrow,  or 
his  good  arms.  No  matter,  he  does  not 
need  a  spear." 

Then  it  was  time  to  throw  the  disk. 


ii4  Four  Old  Greeks 

'  'Oh!  Herakles  will  win  this,"  the 
people  said.    ''Look  at  his  arms!" 

And  Herakles  did  win.  He  threw 
the  disk  twice  as  far  as  the  others. 

"Good  for  Herakles  arms!"  the  peo- 
ple shouted. 

Then  there  was  a  jumping  match. 
Slender  young  men  came  out.  They 
threw  off  their  chitons  and  took  the 
jumping  weights  in  their  hands  and 
swung  them  and  jumped.  The  people 
held  their  breath.     They  said: 

"It  is  as  though  they  were  flying. 
It  is  beautiful." 

Herakles'  turn  came. 

"My  body  is  too  big  to  fly,"  he  said, 
laughing.    "But  I  will  try  it." 

So  he  jumped.  People  looked  at  his 
mark. 

"It  is  the  best  yet,"  they  said. 

Then  a  young  man  took  the  weights. 

"He  is  a  fine-looking  lad,"  Herakles 
said  to  himself.    "Zeus  help  him!" 

The  young  man  jumped. 

"Ah!"  the  people  cried  when  the  boy 
was  in  the  air. 

He  came  down  lightly  on  his  toes. 


Herakles  the   Wanderer       115 

"He  lights  like  a  deer,"  Herakles 
said. 

He  ran  to  the  young  man  and  put 
his  hand  on  his  shoulder. 

"You  have  beaten  me,  lad,"  he  said. 
"Ah!  it  was  a  beautiful  jump." 

The  young  man  looked  up  into  Her- 
akles' eyes. 

"Ah,  Herakles,"  he  said,  "I  can  jump, 
but  I  cannot  kill  lions.  I  cannot  walk 
all  over  the  world.  I  cannot  help  sick 
men  and  unhappy  men.  Only  Herakles 
can  do  that." 

Herakles  smiled  at  him  and  said: 

"I  thank  you,  lad,  for  your  kind 
word." 

Then  the  people  shouted: 

"A  crown  for  Herakles!  He  has  won 
four  games  out  of  six.     He  is  best." 

A  man  ran  to  a  bush  and  picked 
some  leaves  and  made  them  into  a 
wreath.     He  stood  on  a  rock. 

"Come,  Herakles,"  he  called.  "Get 
your  crown." 

So  Herakles  came,  and  the  man  put 
the  crown  upon  his  head.  Then  all 
the  people  shouted: 


u6 


Four  Old  Greeks 


"Herakles,  Herakles!  Winner  of  the 
games!  Let  us  have  a  feast  for  Hera- 
kles." 

They  killed  sheep  and  oxen  and 
roasted  the  meat  in  a  bonfire.  They 
had  wine  and  milk  and  honey  in  black 


ZEUS  AND  HIS  EAGLE 
From  an  old  Greek  coin. 

and  red  vases.  Before  they  sat  down 
to  eat,  Herakles  said: 

"My  father  Zeus  must  have  part  of 
our  feast.  He  is  sitting  in  Olympos 
watching  us.  I  will  burn  part  of  an 
ox  for  him." 

So  the  people  piled  up  dirt  and  sod 
for  an  altar  and  made  a  fire  on  it. 
Herakles   put   meat    into    the   fire   and 


Herakles  the   Wanderer        117 

poured  wine  upon  it.  He  raised  his 
hands  to  the  sky. 

"O,  Father  Zeus,"  he  said,  "we  burn 
meat  and  wine  for  you.  May  the  smell 
be  sweet  to  you  and  make  you  happy!" 

Then  the  people  sat  and  feasted  and 
talked  as  they  ate. 

"Let  us  have  games  like  this  again," 
they  said.  "They  have  been  very  pleas- 
ant, and  Zeus  will  be  glad  to  watch 
them,  too." 

They  talked  about  it  for  a  long  time. 
At  last  they  said: 

"Well,  then,  we  will  have  them  again 
in  four  years." 

CHAPTER   VII. 

After  the  games  in  Olympia  Herakles 
started  off  again  on  one  of  his  long 
journeys.  He  wandered  about  for  a 
great  while,  walking  in  the  far  corners 
of  the  earth  and  doing  many  things. 
At  last  one  day  he  said: 

"I  will  go  home.  I  want  to  see  my 
wife,  and  my  children,  and  my  mother." 

So  he  started.     After  he  had  walked 


ii8  Four   Old  Greeks 

for  a  long  time  he  saw  friends  from 
his  home.  They  had  heard  that  he 
was  coming,  and  had  gone  out  to  meet 
him. 

"Welcome  home,  Herakles!"  they 
cried.  "Your  wife  has  heard  of  your 
coming  and  she  sends  you  this  beau- 
tiful chlamys." 

They  spread  out  a  linen  chlamys, 
white  and  trimmed  with  gold. 

"Ah!"  Herakles  said.  "It  is  very 
beautiful.     I  will  put  it  on." 

He  threw  off  his  lion's  skin.  A  man 
picked  it  up. 

"This  is  that  wonderful  lion's  skin," 
he  said.  "Oh,  I  am  proud  to  hold  Her- 
akles' cloak." 

"But  first  I  will  bathe,"  Herakles 
said,  not  listening  to  the  compliment. 

A  little  river  ran  near.  There  Her- 
akles bathed.  He  came  out  clean  and 
shining.  He  smoothed  his  hair  and 
beard. 

"His  hair  and  beard  are  like  curls 
of  red  gold,"  the  people  said. 

"Now,  friends,  the  chlamys!"  Hera- 
kles shouted. 


Herakles  the   Wanderer        ng 


They  threw  it  around  him.  He  fas- 
tened it  on  his  right  shoulder  with  a 
great  gold  pin.  The  chlamys  hung 
about  him  in  smooth  folds.  His  strong 
neck  showed  above 
it.  The  gold  in  the 
chlamys  shone,  but 
his  red  hair  and 
beard  shone  more. 
His  strong  white 
legs  showed  below 
the  cloak.  His 
right  arm  was  bare. 
He  carried  his  sil- 
ver bow  in  that 
hand. 

The  people 
looked  at  him,  and 
their  eyes  opened 
wide. 

"Oh,  he  is  beau- 
tiful!" they  said. 
"Zeus  must  be 
proud  of  him." 

And  Zeus  was 
proud  of  him.    He 

WaS  Watching  from    As  Herakles  appeared  after  his  bath. 


120  Four  Old  Greeks 

the  sky,  and  so  were  all  the  other  people 
of  Otympos. 

"He  is  beautiful,"  they  said. 

Herakles  was  talking  to  his  friends. 

"It  is  good  to  see  you  again.  I  am 
glad  when  I  think  of  being  at  home. 
But  I  must  thank  my  father  Zeus  for  my 
safe  journey.  Come  up  the  mountain 
with  me.    We  shall  be  near  him  there." 

He  pointed  to  the  mountain  with  its 
top  near  the  clouds.  So  they  climbed 
it.  When  they  stood  on  the  top,  Her- 
akles looked  about  smiling  and  said: 

' '  How  far  we  can  see !  Look,  there  is 
v&y  house  miles  away.  Do  you  see  the 
blue  hills  far  off  to  the  south?  That  is 
Olympia.  Do  you  see  the  forest  off 
yonder?  That  is  where  the  lion  lived. 
Oh,  this  is  a  beautiful  country.  But 
come,  let  us  build  an  altar." 

They  piled  up  dirt  and  sod  and  then 
built  a  little  fire  on  the  top.  One  man 
carried  a  skin  bottle  full  of  wine. 

"Let  me  take  the  wine  bottle,"  Her- 
akles said. 

He  poured  wine  upon  the  fire  and 
raised  his  hands. 


Herakles  the   Wanderer        121 

"O,  Father  Zeus!"  he  called,  "hear  us. 
We  love  you.   Do  something  kind  to  us." 

The  people  were  watching  Herakles. 

"He  is  not  a  common  man,"  they 
said.     "He  looks  like  Zeus  himself." 

All  at  once  Herakles  put  his  hand  to 
his   side.     He   frowned   and   cried   out. 

"What  is  it?"  his  friends  asked. 

"Oh,  a  terrible  pain!"  Herakles  said. 

He  sank  upon  his  knees  and  rested 
his  head  on  the  edge  of  the  altar. 

"Oh,  oh!"  he  cried.  "Surely  I  am 
going  to  die." 

"What  can  we  do?"  his  friends  asked. 

Herakles  did  not  hear  them.  He 
kept  crying  out  and  holding  his  side. 
Suddenly  he  jumped  up. 

"Oh,  the  pain,  the  pain!"  he  cried.  "I 
cannot  endure  it.  It  is  worse  than  fire. 
What  can  I  do?  Ah!  I  know.  I  will 
put  fire  about  me.  That  will  not  hurt 
so  much  as  this.  That  is  a  better  way 
to  die.  And  the  great  fire  will  say  to 
Zeus:  'Your  son  is  not  afraid  to  die.'" 

Then  he  saw  his  friends.  He  had 
forgotten  them. 

"Go  away!   go  away!"  he  said. 


122  Four  Old  Greeks 

So  they  went  away  and  stood  far 
down  on  the  mountain  side  and  watched. 

Herakles  broke  off  a  hundred  trees 
and  piled  them  up.  Then  he  went  upon 
the  pile  and  raised  his  hands  to  the  sky. 

"O,  Father  Zeus! "he  cried,  "love  my 
children.    Take  care  of  my  wife." 

He  looked  down  the  mountain  and 
saw  his  friends.  He  put  his  hands  to 
his  mouth  and  shouted: 

"Let  one  of  you  come  up  to  me." 

A  man  came  running.  Herakles  said 
to  him: 

"Take  one  of  the  burning  sticks  from 
the  altar-fire  and  light  this  pile." 

"No,  no!"  the  man  cried. 

"If  you  love  me  you  will  do  it," 
Herakles  said.  "I  beg  of  you  do  it.  Oh, 
the  pain!    If  you  love  me!" 

So  at  last  the  man  did  it,  saying: 

"Ah!  Herakles,  I  do  love  you." 

"Thank  you,  friend,"  said  Herakles. 
"Take  this  silver  bow.  It  used  to 
belong  to  Apollo.  Next  it  belonged  to 
Herakles.     Now  it  is  yours." 

The  yellow  fire  began  to  show.  It 
leaped  with  the  wind.     Herakles  smiled. 


Herakles  the   Wanderer        123 

"It  is  beautiful,"  he  said.  "It  will 
cure  my  pain." 

His  friends  were  watching  far  off 
and  weeping. 

"We  shall  never  see  him  again," 
they  said. 

They  covered  their  faces  with  their 
hands.  All  at  once  they  heard  a  great 
clap  of  thunder.  They  uncovered  their 
faces  and  looked  up  the  mountain.  The 
yellow  fire  was  blazing  high  in  front 
of  the  dark  pine  trees  of  the  forest. 
The  people  looked  into  the  sky.  They 
saw  a  silver  cloud  dropping  quickly 
through  the  air.  Lightning  shot  from 
it.  It  dropped  upon  Herakles.  Then  it 
opened  for  a  minute  and  the  people  saw 
Athene  in  a  chariot  of  gold  with  four 
white  horses.  She  held  out  her  hand  to 
Herakles  and  he  stood  up  and  stepped 
into  the  chariot.  Then  Athene  turned 
the  horses,  and  the  cloud  shut  and 
quickly  flew  up  into  the  sky  again. 
The  people  stood  still.  At  first  they 
could  not  speak  for  wonder,  but  then 
they  shouted: 

"Herakles!    Herakles!    He  has  gone 


124  Four   Old  Greeks 

to  live  in  Olympos.  Zeus  loves  him. 
He  has  gone  to  live  with  Zeus." 

They  ran  down  the  mountain  and 
along  the  roads.  They  found  people 
standing  in  the  fields  and  before  their 
house-doors,  looking  into  the  sky  and 
at  the  mountain.  They  said  to  Her- 
akles' friends: 

"Did  you  see  the  great  yellow  fire 
and  the  silver  cloud?" 

'  \  Yes, ' '  Herakles'  friends  answered. 
"It  was  for  Herakles.  He  has  gone  to 
Olympos.  No  more  hard  work  for  him ! 
He  can  rest  now." 

Then  all  the  people  shouted  for  joy, 
because  that  wonderful  thing  had  hap- 
pened to  Herakles. 

CHAPTER  VIII. 

So  Herakles  rode  through  the  sky 
with  Athene.  They  came  to  the  wall 
of  Olympos.  The  golden  gates  opened 
and  the  horses'  feet  struck  the  marble 
floor.  Herakles  saw  many  palaces  of 
gold  and  of  silver  with  green  lawns 
around    them    and    beautiful    orchards 


Herakles  the  Wanderer        125 

near.  The  horses  stopped  before  a  great 
palace  of  shining  gold.  A  man  was 
standing  in  the  door.  He  was  tall  and 
strong.  His  eyes  moved  slowly.  He 
smiled  a  slow  smile  at  Herakles. 

"It  is  Zeus,  my  father!"  Herakles 
cried. 

Zeus  held  out  his  arms  and  Herakles 
ran  into  them. 

"My  son!"  Zeus  said. 

His  voice  sounded  like  the  wind 
among  the  trees  and  it  made  Herakles 
very  happy. 

"Come  into  our  palace,"  said  Zeus. 
"The  others  wish  to  see  you." 

They  walked  into  the  great  room. 
There  sat  a  long  table  with  shining 
gold  and  silver  dishes  on  it,  and  piles 
of  fruit.  Great  carved  chairs  were  by 
the  table.  Beautiful  people  stood  by 
them.  They  were  the  wonderful  peo- 
ple of  Olympos.  They  were  very  tall. 
Their  robes  were  soft  and  long.  Their 
skin  was  white.  Their  hair  was  like 
gold. 

Herakles  and  Zeus  stopped  at  the 
door.     The  people  called: 


126  Four    Old   Greeks 

"Hail,  Herakles!  Welcome  to  Olym- 
pos !  " 

Their  voices  were  music.  The  peo- 
ple all  crowded  around  Herakles  and 
said  kind  things  to  him.  Apollo  put 
his  hand  upon  the  hero's  shoulder. 

"I  am  glad  to  see  you  in  Olympos," 
he  said.  "You  will  not  shoot  at  me 
here,  will  you?" 

Then  he  laughed. 

At  last  Zeus  said : 

"Now  let  us  sit  and  feast.  Herakles 
will  sit  by  me." 

So  they  feasted  and  laughed  and  sang 
and  talked.     Zeus  said  to  Herakles: 

"We  have  been  watching  you  all 
your  life.  We  saw  you  kill  the  lion  and 
the  hydra  and  we  said,  'He  is  strong 
and  brave/  We  saw  you  chase  the  deer 
and  we  said,  'He  is  patient/  We  saw 
how  you  loved  men  and  we  told  one 
another,  'We  must  have  him  in  Olym- 
pos/    I  am  proud  of  you,  my  son." 

And  all  the  other  Happy  People  said: 

"We  are  all  proud  of  Herakles." 


Herakles  the   Wanderer        127 


CHAPTER  IX. 

So  Herakles  lived  in  Olympos.  He 
could  look  all  over  the  world  and  see 
men.  He  loved  them  now  as  much  as 
he  used  to,  and  he  still  wished  to  help 
them.     He  saw  many  people  sick. 

"What  can  I 
do  for  them?"  he 
thought. 

Then  he  made 
springs  of  warm 
water  flow  from 
the  ground.  Sick 
people  came  to 
these  springs  and 
bathed  in  them 
and  were  well. 
Then   they  said : 

"Herakles  has 
done  this  because  he  loves  us. 
thank  him." 

So  they  built  a  marble  altar  there. 
They  poured  wine  upon  it  and  raised 
their  hands  to  the  sky,  saying: 

"O,  Herakles,  we  thank  you/' 

Up  in  Olympos   Herakles  saw  them 


HERAKLES  IN  OLYMPOS 
Fro?n  a  Greek  coin. 


Let  us 


128 


Four  Old  Greeks 


and  heard  their  prayer  and  smelled  the 
wine,  and  was  glad  because  he  had 
made  these  men  happy. 

The  people  left  the  altar  and  a  man 
to  take  care  of  it.  They  called  him  the 
priest  of  Herakles.  When  they  went 
away  they  told    others  who  were    sick 


PEOPLE  GOING  TO  AN  ALTAR 

about  this  wonderful  spring.  So  every 
year  many  people  came  there  and 
bathed  in  the  water  and  prayed  at  the 
altar  and  were  made  well. 

In  Olympia  men  still  kept  up  the 
games.  People  came  from  all  over 
Greece   to    see   and   to   play.     An  altar 


Herakles  the   Wanderer        129 


to  Herakles  had 
been  built  there. 
Athletes,  before 
they  began  the 
games,  went  to 
this  altar  and 
poured  wine  and 
prayed : 

"You  played 
here    first    and 

A  CHARIOT  RACE  AT  OLYMPIA 
WOn.         YOU      are  From  an  old  Greek  coin. 

/-x  I  Victory  is  giving  a  crown  to  the  driver, 

now,  watching.  Make  me  strong  and 
help  me  to  win/' 

The  men  who  did  win  were  given 
crowns  from  a  certain  wild  olive  tree. 
It  was  little  and  old  and  crooked,  but 
people  were  very  careful  of  it  as  though 
it  was  precious.  A  boy  used  a  sickle  of 
gold  to  cut  the  leaves  for  the  crowns. 

"That  is  the  very  tree  that  Herakles 
planted  hundreds  of  years  ago,"  people 
said.  "He  brought  it  from  the  far 
north.  He  had  a  long,  hard  way  to 
bring  it.  He  climbed  great  mountains 
and  waded  cold  rivers.  He  had  only 
his  lion-skin  to  sleep  on  at  night.     Yet 


ijo  Four   Old  Greeks 

he  walked  all  that  distance  and  carried 
this  tree/' 

At  one  time  people  were  building  a 
house  for  Zeus  in  Olympia. 

"Let  us  put  the  story  of  Herakles 
upon  it,"  they  said.  "Zeus  loves  him  as 
much  as  we  do.  He  would  be  proud  to 
see  his  son's  story  here.  And  visitors 
who  come  would  be  glad  to  see  it." 

So  they  took  blocks  of  marble  and 
cut  figures  in  them,  in  bas-relief  as  we 
call  it.  Then  they  painted  the  figures 
so  that  they  looked  like  raised  pic- 
tures. On  one  slab  of  marble  Herakles 
was  killing  the  lion.  On  another  he  was 
killing  the  hydra.  On  another  he  was 
chasing  the  deer.  There  were  many 
more  slabs  that  showed  him  doing  other 
things.  Men  fastened  these  pieces  of 
marble  high  on  the  outside  wall  of  the 
house.  People  liked  to  come  and  look 
at  them  and  talk  of  Herakles. 

"Those  were  brave  things  that  he 
did,"  they  said.  "And  he  still  loves  us 
and  helps  us  from  Olympos." 

All  over  Greece  men  made  statues  of 
Herakles,  in  bronze  or  in  marble,  and 


Herakles  the   Wanderer        iji 

put  them  into  their  gymnasia,  where 
the  young  men  went  to  practice. 

"There/'  they  said.  "Look  at  Hera- 
kles and  be  like  him." 

So  Herakles  sat  in  Olympos  and 
looked  all  over  the  world.  He  saw  his 
statues.  He  saw  the  painted  bas-reliefs 
in  Olympia.  Everywhere  he  saw  his 
altars,  with  fires  burning  on  them.  The 
smoke  curled  up,  and  sweet  odors  came 
to  him.  He  saw  the  raised  hands  and 
upturned  faces  of  men  and  heard  their 
prayers  of  thanksgiving.  And  at  all  this 
he  smiled  happily,  saying  to  himself: 

"They  love  me,  and  I  love  them." 


DIONYSOS 
After  he  has  worked  much  and  grown  older. 


The  Merry  Dionysos 


'33 


THE  MERRY  DIONYSOS 


A 


CHAPTER  I. 

LONG  time  ago,  among  the  woods 
of  Greece,  a  little  boy  was  born. 
The  mother  died  before  she  saw 
her  baby.  The  little  fellow  lay  there 
alone.  Zeus  was  sitting  in  Olympos 
and  looking  all  over  the  world  with  his 
great  slow  eyes.     He  saw  the  boy. 

"My  dear  little  son!"  he  said.    "No 
mother,  and  I?  his  father,  so  far  away!" 

He  strode   down   the   sky   and   took 
the  wee  baby  in 
his    great    strong 
arms. 

"He  is  very 
little,"  Zeus  said, 
and  smiled.  "I 
will  wrap  him  in  a 
corner  of  the  sky 
until  he  grows  a 
Kit  n 

•  HEAD  OF  ZEUS 

SO        there       the  From  a  Greek  coin. 


134  Four  Old  Greeks 

baby  lay  sleeping  for  many  days.  The 
corner  of  the  sky  swung  gently  in  the 
warm  breeze.  The  clean  air  up  there 
and  the  sun  and  the  stillness  were  the 
very  best  things  for  babies.  So  when 
Zeus  went,  after  a  while,  and  unwrapped 
the  boy  and  looked  at  him,  the  child 
laughed  and  clutched  at  the  beard  of 
Zeus,  and  Zeus  smiled  his  slow  smile 
and  said: 

"He  is  a  happy  little  fellow." 

He  called  Hermes  and  said  to  him: 

"Take    this    baby    to    the    nymphs 

yonder  on  Mount  Nysa.     Tell  them  to 

care  well   for  him.     We  will   call   him 

Dionysos,  'The  one  from  Nysa.'" 

So  Hermes  took  the  baby  and  tossed 
him  in  his  arms  as  he  flew  to  Mount 
Nysa.  Oh!  it  was  a  pretty  place  to  live 
in.  The  great  hill  was  covered  with 
trees.  Little  brooks  tumbled  down  the 
sides.  There  were  caves  with  moss  on 
the  floor  and  vines  hanging  at  the 
doors.  As  Hermes  walked  up  the  hill- 
side among  the  trees  he  called: 

"O  n37rmphs  of  Nysa,  come  and  see 
what  I  have  brought  you." 


The  Merry  Dionysos  135 

"What  is  it?  What  is  it?"  and  from 
all  the  wood  women  came  running. 

They  dropped  their  flowers  as  they 
ran.  Some  came  from  the  river,  and 
their  bare  bodies  were  dripping  and 
shining  with  the  water.  Some  came 
from  their  trees  and  they  were  waving 
branches  over  their  heads.  When  they 
saw  the  baby,  they  all  cried  "Oh!"  a 
thousand  times  and  in  a  thousand  ways. 

"A  baby!"  "The  big  blue  eyes!"  "Is 
he  for  us?"  "To  keep?" 

"Give  him  to  me,"  said  one,  and  she 
held  out  her  arms  to  him. 

He  laughed  and  jumped  into  them. 

"Bless  the  baby!"  and  off  she  ran  to 
the  cave. 

All  the  others  followed  her  to  see  the 
baby. 

Hermes  went  back  to  the  sky  chuck- 
ling to  himself: 

"He  will  be  happy  there." 

And  happy  he  was  —  rolling  on  the 
grass,  snuggling  up  under  flowers  to 
sleep,  swinging  with  a  nymph  in  the 
very  top  of  a  tree.  Pan  and  the  satyrs 
used  to-  come  and  play  with  him.    They 


ij6 


Four  Old  Greeks 


ran  with  him  up 
the  rough  moun- 
tains. They  took 
him  to  the  dark- 
est place  of  the 
woods  and  played 
on  their  pipes  for 
him.  Old  Silenos 
taught  him  the 
names  of  trees 
and  f  1  o  wers, 
showed  him  where  the  wild  strawberries 
grew,  told  him  how  the  earth  was  made, 
and  showed  him  what  the  fruits  need 
to  make  them  ripen. 

Indeed,  Dionysos  could  talk  to  trees 
and  flowers  as  we  people  do  to  one  an- 
other. He  was  the  friend  of  all  the 
things  in  the  wood.  When  he  saw  a 
tree  dying,  he  knew  just  what  to  do  to 
make  it  well  again. 


PAN 
From  the  cover  of  a  Greek 
drinking  cup. 


CHAPTER  II. 


One  day,  after  Dionysos  had  grown 
to  be  quite  a  boy,  he  was  wandering 
alone   through   the   woods.     He   saw  a 


The  Merry  Dionysos  137 

== 
great  vine   running   to   the   top   of   an 

elm  tree.     He  had  never  before  seen  a 

vine    like    it.     There  were    clusters    of 

purple  berries  on  it.   They  were  grapes, 

but  he  did  not  know  what  they  were. 

He  tasted  them;   they  were  sweet  and 

juicy.     He    studied    the   vine  carefully 

to  find  what  kind  of  soil  it  liked,  how 

it    held    to    the    tree,    and    whether    it 

needed  shade. 

"Good  vine,  I  will  come  to  see  you 
again/ '  he  said.  "But  give  me  some 
berries  to  take  to  the  nymphs/ ' 

He  picked  his  hands  full  and  started 
for  the  cave. 

"Here  are  the  sweetest  berries  you 
ever  tasted ! "  he  shouted  when  he  saw 
the  nymphs. 

"Give  us  some!"  they  cried  and 
snatched  for  them  and  laughed. 

"Not  until  you  say  'please,'"  and  he 
held  them  high  over  his  head,  laughing. 

But  he  held  them  so  tightly  that  the 
juice  squeezed  out  and  dropped  from 
his  hands.  The  nymphs  caught  it  in 
their  mouths.  They  opened  their  eyes 
wide  when  they  tasted  it. 


ij8  Four   Old  Greeks 

"That  is  the  best  thing  I  ever 
tasted,"  cried  one.    "Give  us  more." 

"They  are  all  spoiled,"  Dionysos  said, 
opening  his  hands  and  showing  them. 
"Come,  let  us  get  some,"  and  they  all 
ran  through  the  wood  to  the  vine. 

That  was  a  merry  feast  they  had. 
Dionysos  looked  around  on  the  nymphs 
as  they  were  eating. 

"Oh,  ho!"  he  laughed  and  pointed 
his  finger  at  them.  "See  the  purple  on 
your  lips  and  hands!" 

They  looked  at  one  another  and 
laughed.     But  they  said: 

"We  don't  care,  the  berries  are  good." 

"I  will  go  back  and  get  a  basket," 
said  Dionysos.  "We  can  take  some 
home  for  supper." 

How  Silenos  and  the  jolly  satyrs 
smacked  their  lips  over  the  purple 
grapes  that  night! 

CHAPTER   III. 

After  that,  Dionysos  studied  the  vine 
more  and  more.  He  learned  how  to  start 
new   plants,   how   to   make   the   grapes 


The  Merry  Dionysos  ijg 

grow  larger.  He  found  that  if  he  picked 
them  and  put  them  in  the  sun,  they 
would  become  very  sweet  and  would 
keep  all  through  the  winter.  These 
raisins  and  the  grapes  he  and  his 
friends  ate  at  their  feasts.  He  remem- 
bered the  sweet  juice  that  he  squeezed 
from  the  grapes  on  that  first  day. 

"That  would  make  a  good  drink," 
he  thought. 

He  built  a  sort  of  press  and  squeezed 
the  grapes  in  it.  He  caught  the  juice 
in  a  skin  bottle.  When  he  tasted  it  he 
smiled  to  himself  and  went  to  find  the 
nymphs,  carrying  the  full  bottle. 

"Come  taste  my  wine,"  he  called. 

So  the  nymphs  ran  up  to  him  and 
tasted  the  wine  and  clapped  their  hands 
and  tasted  again. 

'  \  Surely  Zeus  in  Olympos  never  drank 
so  sweet  a  drink,"  they  said.  "Dionysos, 
you  shall  be  our  wine-maker  and  always 
have  wine  ready  for  our  feasts." 

At  one  of  these  banquets  Dionysos 
said : 

"The  raisins  would  be  cleaner  if  they 
did  not  lie  on  the  floor." 


1 40  Four   Old  Greeks 

"Oh,  it's  all  right,"  said  the  lazy 
satyrs. 

But  the  next  night,  when  all  the 
people  came  to  supper,  there  was  a  low 
table.  The  fruits  were  heaped  on  this. 
Beside  it  were  couches  of  leaves.  The 
nymphs  and  satyrs  opened  their  mouths 
in  wonder. 

"This  is  a  new  way  to  eat,"  said 
Dionysos,  as  he  lay  down  on  the  leaves. 

He  did  another  thing  to  make  their 
banquets  pleasanter.  At  one  of  their 
feasts  he  said: 

"This  goat-skin  that  we  have  our 
wine  in  is  a  great  nuisance.  See  how 
Cora  must  always  tie  the  mouth  to- 
gether. If  she  forgets  to  do  that,  the 
wine  spills  out.  A  wine  skin  ought  to 
stand  up." 

The  next  day  he  came  to  the  cave 
all  covered  with  dirt.  In  his  hands  he 
was  holding  very  carefully  a  big  lump 
of  clay.  But  when  the  nymphs  looked 
at  it  closely  they  saw  that  it  was  thin, 
and  that  there  was  a  great  empty  place 
inside. 

"What   are    you    going    to    do   with 


The  Merry  Dionysos  141 

that  dirty  thing ?"  they  asked  and  held 
their  robes  away. 

He  laughed  and  told  them  to  wait. 
He  walked  to  the  fire  at  the  mouth  of 
the  cave.  He  set  the  clay  down  in  the 
hottest  place.  Then  he  sat  by  it  and 
watched  it  and  turned  it. 

"It  is  growing  red/'  the  nymphs  cried. 

Dionysos  only  smiled  and  turned  the 
clay  again.  The  nymphs  were  soon 
tired  of  watching  him. 

"Oh,  come  and  play!"  they  said. 

"No,"  answered  Dionysos,  "I  am 
busy;  you  run  on." 

And  so  they  did.  Late  in  the  after- 
noon they  came  back.  Dionysos  walked 
toward  them  carrying  the  red  clay  thing. 

"Drink  from  my  jar,"  he  said. 

And  sure  enough,  it  was  full  of  water. 

"But  the  water  will  be  muddy,"  they 
cried. 

"Try  it  and  see,"  he  laughed. 

"No,  it  is  good  and  clean, "  they  said 
in   surprise.    "Why,  the  clay  is  hard!" 

"Yes,  indeed,"  said  Dionysos.  "And 
see,  it  will  stand  alone  and  not  spill," 
and  he  set  it  on  the  ground. 


142 


Four  Old  Greeks 


Then  he  and  the  nymphs  and  the 
satyrs  joined  hands  and  danced  around 
it.  And  they  made  up  a  song  some- 
what like  this : 

"Dionysos  is  wiser  than  old  Silenos. 
He  found  for  us  a  new  kind  of  berry. 
Wine  and  raisins  he  made  for  us.  But 
this  is  the  best  thing  of  all  —  a  wine  skin 
out  of  clay  that  will  not  roll  over  and 
spill.    Dionysos!  Evoe,  evoe!  Dionysos!" 


CHAPTER  IV. 

At  supper  that  night  Dionysos  was 
very  sober. 

"What  is  the  matter ?"  asked  his 
friends. 

But  he  only  shook  his  head.  At  last 
he  said : 

"Dear  friends,  I  think  I  must  leave 
you." 

"Leave  us?    Where  are  you  going?" 

"You  know  how  much  happier  and 


The  Merry  Dionysos  143 

more  comfortable  we  are  since  I  found 
these  grapes/'  and  he  took  up  a  bunch 
of  them. 

"Oh,  yes,  Dionysos,  have  we  not 
thanked  you  a  thousand  times  ?" 

"Yes,  you  have  indeed.  I  think,  too, 
that  this  jar  will  be  a  pleasant  thing  to 
use.  Well,  if  these  things  make  us 
happy,  I  think  they  will  make  other 
people  happy,  too.  So  I  am  going  to 
take  a  jar  of  wine  and  a  basket  of 
grapes  and  slips  of  the  vine  all  over  the 
world  with  me.  I  will  plant  the  vine 
and  teach  people  to  make  jars  and  to 
make  wine." 

"But  think  how  we  shall  miss  you, 
Dionysos,"  pleaded  the  nymphs. 

"It  will  be  very  lonely  without  you,  ' 
said  old  Silenos. 

"Yes,  I  know.  And  I  am  sad,  too, 
when  I  think  of  leaving  you.  But  I 
must  go  and  help  others." 

He  would  not  listen  to  their  plead- 
ings. 

"No,  I  must  go,"  he  said. 

"Then  we  will  go  with  you,"  they  all 
cried.    "We  will  all  go  together." 


144  Four  Old  Greeks 

"Will  you?  Oh,  then  I  am  happy. 
All  over  the  world,  together!"  and  he 
laughed  with  joy  and  clapped  his  hands. 

They  all  jumped  up  and  danced 
around  the  cave,  singing: 

"All  over  the  world  together!  We 
will  teach  men  how  to  raise  the  grape. 
We  will  show  them  how  to  make  jars 
out  of  clay.  We  will  help  them  to 
make  sweet  wine.  All  over  the  world 
together!     Oh,  we  are  merry  people!" 

So  they  went.  Every  one  took  a  jar 
of  wine  and  a  basket  of  grapes  or 
raisins  and  slips  of  the  vine.  They  were 
such  gay,  kind  people  that  the  animals 
of  the  forest  loved  them.  That  morning 
when  they  started,  leopards  and  pan- 
thers and  fawns  and  wild  asses  followed 
them  from  the  wood. 

As  they  were  shouting  and  running 
along  not  far  from  their  forest  they  saw 
a  little  mud-plastered  house  on  a  hill- 
side. A  young  man  was  spading  the 
ground. 

"Hello!"  shouted  Dionysos,  "what 
are  you  going  to  plant?" 

"Wheat." 


The  Merry  Dionysos  145 

"And  what  are  you  going  to  plant  on 
the  hill  farther  up  there  ?" 

"Nothing.  Grain  will  not  grow  there. 
It  is  pasture  for  my  sheep/ ' 

"Come  with  me,  my  friend, "  said  Dio- 
nysos.   "I  will  show  you  something/ ' 

"Yes,  come  with  us,"  shouted  all  the 
nymphs  and  satyrs.  "We  will  show 
you  the  finest  thing  you  ever  saw,"  and 
they  laughed,  thinking  of  the  surprise 
they  would  give  him. 

As  they  walked  up  the  hill,  Dionysos 
handed  the  farmer  a  bunch  of  grapes. 

"See  how  you  like  these,"  he  said. 

The  young  fellow  took  them  wonder- 
ingly.  He  tasted  one  —  he  stared;  he 
tasted  another. 

"Why,  this  is  food  for  the  gods!"  he 
cried. 

That  is  what  he  called  the  people 
who  lived  in  high  Olympos  —  Zeus  and 
Apollo  and  the  others. 

"Indeed  it  is,"  said  all  the  merry 
folk.  "Oh,  this  is  a  pleasant  thing,  to 
give  these  fine  grapes  to  people,"  and 
they  laughed  at  the  joy  of  it. 

When   they   came   to   a   young    elm 


146  Four  Old  Greeks 

tree  on  the  hillside,  Dionysos  stopped. 
He  took  the  farmer's  spade  and  dug  a 
little  hole. 

"Do  you  see  this  little  green  twig? 
I  will  plant  it  in  this  hole.  During  all 
this  summer  I  will  send  the  dews  and 
the  heat  to  make  it  grow.  If  you  take 
good  care  of  it,  you  will  be  picking 
all  the  grapes  you  want  from  it  in  a 
few  years.  Stick  a  crooked  branch  into 
the  ground  by  it.  Teach  it  to  cling  to 
that.  But  when  it  grows  taller,  let  it 
climb  this  elm  tree.  Sometime  the  elm 
will  be  heavy  with  purple  grapes/' 

And  he  told  him  how  to  put  a  fence 
around  the  vine  to  keep  the  sheep  and 
goats  away.  And  he  taught  him  how 
to  make  raisins.  He  built  a  wine  press 
for  him  and  showed  him  how  to  make 
wine.  And  he  gave  him  a  jar  and  told 
him  how  to  make  others. 

Before  the  merry  people  left,  they 
and  the  farmer  and  his  wife  joined 
hands  and  danced  around  the  little 
vine.     They  sang: 

"Thank  Dionysos  for  the  grapevine. 
Thank  Dionysos  for  the  dew  and  the 


The  Merry  Dionysos  14"/ 

heat  that  make  the  apples  and  oranges 
ripe.  Thank  Dionysos  when  you  gather 
the  fruit.  Dionysos  loves  you.  Diony- 
sos !   Dionysos !   Evoe !  " 

And  off  they  danced  down  the  hill 
and  through  the  valley,  and  the  leop- 
ards and  fawns  and  panthers  followed. 

Wherever  these  merry  folk  found  a 
good  man  working  on  his  farm  they 
planted  a  vine  and  left  a  jar.  Some- 
times they  came  to  a  country  where  the 
men  were  wild  hunters  and  did  not  live 
in  houses.  Then  they  built  a  little  vil- 
lage for  them  and  planted  vines  outside 
the  walls.  In  one  of  the  houses  of  the 
village  they  spread  a  fine  feast.  There 
were  grapes  and  raisins  and  fruits  and 
beautiful  jars  on  the  tables.  Then  they 
called  the  people  together  in  that  house 
and  Dionysos  said: 

"My  friends,  we  have  made  a  feast 
for  you.    Let  us  sit  and  eat." 

As  they  ate,  Dionysos  talked  to  them 
about  farms  and  vineyards.  He  told 
them  how  pleasant  it  is  to  see  the  fields 
yellow  with  grain,  and  how  beautiful  an 
apple  tree  looks  with  red  apples  on  it. 


148  Four  Old  Greeks 

1 '  But  a  vine  loaded  with  purple  grapes 
is  the  most  beautiful  of  all,"  he  said. 
"And  isn't  it  pleasant  to  eat  at  neat 
tables,  with  clean  dishes,  and  to  have 
couches  to  lie  on?  Don't  you  like  it 
better  than  standing  around  a  bonfire 
and  eating  meat  out  of  your  hands?" 

1 '  Yes,  this  is  a  good  way  to  live,  but 
we  do  not  know  how,"  they  answered. 

So  Dionysos  stayed  with  them  for  a 
year  and  taught  them  how  to  live  in  vil- 
lages and  how  to  care  for  the  orchards 
and  vineyards  outside  and  how  to  eat 
at  tables  and  how  to  use  dishes. 

When  he  went  away  he  promised  to 
send  dew  and  heat  every  year  to  ripen 
the  fruits.  The  people  followed  him  far 
out  of  the  city,  singing  and  shouting  : 

' '  Dionysos !    Dionysos !    Evoe,  evoe ! " 

CHAPTER   V. 

One  time  Dionysos  and  his  people 
came  to  the  ocean. 

"How  shall  wre  cross?"  the  nymphs 
cried. 

Immediately  all  the  great  fish  of  the 


The  Merry  Dionysos  149 

sea  swam  to  the  shore.  The  merry  peo- 
ple jumped  upon  their  backs  and  went 
singing  through  the  water  until  they 
came  to  an  island. 

"Farewell,  good  fishes!"  they  cried. 
"Perhaps  we  shall  need  you  again.' ' 

Through  this  island  they  went  danc- 
ing and  singing  for  many  days.  When 
the  nymphs  grew  tired  they  lay  on  the 
backs  of  panthers,  and  the  panthers  were 
pleased  to  carry  them. 

One  day  Dionysos  said: 

"We  must  stay  here  no  longer.  We 
have  other  work  to  do." 

He  led  the  way  toward  the  shore,  but 
on  the  edge  of  the  sand  he  stopped. 
There  on  a  rock  in  the  shade  of  a  little 
tree  lay  a  woman  sleeping.  She  was  the 
most  beautiful  woman  Dionysos  had  ever 
seen.  Her  robe  was  blue.  Her  yellow 
hair  fell  over  the  brown  rock.  Dionysos 
held  up  his  hand,  and  all  the  nymphs  and 
satyrs  were  still.  They  held  their  breath, 
seeing  how  beautiful  she  was.  Dionysos 
stood  looking  at  her  a  long  time.  Then 
he  went  to  her  and  kissed  her  and  said : 

"Awake,  dear  lady." 


150  Four  Old  Greeks 

She  started  up,  greatly  frightened. 

"Who  are  you?"  she  cried. 

"Do  not  be  afraid.  We  are  your 
friends,"  answered  Dionysos. 

"Oh!"  she  cried,  "my  friends  have 
left  me.  They  have  gone  away,"  and 
she  began  to  weep. 

• '  Do  not  weep.  We  will  take  care 
of  you.  Let  us  be  your  friends,"  said 
Dionysos. 

He  motioned  to  the  nymphs  to  come. 
They  came  and  bathed  her  hands  and 
feet.  Then  they  gave  her  fruits  and 
sang  to  her  while  she  ate.  She  soon 
began  to  smile  at  their  songs. 

"Tell  us  your  name,  dear  lady,"  they 
said. 

"My  name  is  Ariadne.  I  was  sailing 
in  a  ship,  but  my  friends  have  gone," 
and  she  began  to  look  sad  again. 

"But  you  shall  not  be  left  alone. 
You  shall  go  dancing  all  over  the  world 
with  us.  We  are  Dionysos'  merry  peo- 
ple. Come  with  us,"  said  the  nymphs 
and  satyrs. 

She  did  go  and  was  very  happy,  and 
everybody  loved  her.    The  nymphs  used 


The  Merry  Dionysos  151 

to  make  garlands  of  flowers  and  put 
them  on  her  head.  Then  they  sat  on 
the  ground  around  her  and  listened 
while  she  told  them  stories.  When  the 
noisy  satyrs  came  near  her  they  were 
still  and  smiled  at  her  and  whispered: 

"Is  she  not  beautiful !" 

When  she  slept,  the  panthers  came 
and  lay  by  her  and  watched  her  all 
night.  Whenever  Dionysos  awoke  in 
the  morning,  the  first  thing  was: 

"Where  is  Ariadne ?"  and  he  went 
and  sat  by  her  and  talked. 

When  they  started  on  a  new  day's 
journey  he  would  say: 

"Come,  walk  beside  me,  Ariadne." 

He  was  never  happy  except  when 
she  was  with  him. 

But  one  morning  when  they  awoke, 
Ariadne  was  dead.  The  poor  sad 
nymphs  and  satyrs!  Poor  sad  Dion}^ 
sos!  He  looked  at  her  a  long  time. 
Then  he  took  the  golden  crown  from 
her  head.  He  turned  it  over  and  over 
in  his  hands  and  kissed  it  and  said: 

"This  shall  shine  in  the  sky  to  tell 
how  much  we  loved  Ariadne." 


152  Four  Old  Greeks 

He  threw  it  high  into  the  air.  It 
changed  into  stars  and  hung  there  in 
the  sky  forever  after. 

CHAPTER  VI. 

One  day  Dionysos  wandered  away 
from  his  people  and  came  to  the  shore 
of  the  sea.  He  was  tired,  for  he  had 
walked  far.  So  he  lay  down  under  a 
tree  and  fell  asleep. 

After  awhile  a  ship  full  of  pirates 
came  to  that  shore.  The  men  got  out 
and  walked  along  the  land.  At  last 
they  came  to  Dionysos. 

"What  is  this?"  they  cried. 

"See  the  golden  clasps  on  his  san- 
dals!" said  one. 

"There  are  a  dozen  rubies  in  his 
cloak-pin/ '  said  another. 

"He  must  be  a  king's  son,"  they  all 
agreed.  "Let  us  take  him  on  board;  we 
shall  get  a  great  ransom  for  him." 

So  they  lifted  him  and  carried  him 
to  the  ship.  It  was  strange,  but  he  did 
not  waken.  They  laid  him  on  the  deck. 
When  the  pilot  saw  him  he  said: 


The  Merry  Dionysos  153 

"He  is  handsomer  than  a  king's  son, 
even.  See  how  tall  he  is!  A  king's 
hair  was  never  so  golden.  I  tell  you 
he  must  have  come  from  Olympos." 

The  men  laughed  and  sat  down  to 
their  oars. 

"What  are  you  going  to  do  with 
him?"  asked  the  pilot. 

"Take  him  far  away  from  his  home. 
Then  we  will  send  a  man  back  to  tell 
his  father.  He  will  surely  give  us  a 
shipful  of  gold  for  his  son,"  answered 
one  of  the  men. 

"You  shall  not  do  it,"  said  the  pilot. 

Just  then  Dionysos  opened  his  eyes, 
but  he  was  still  half  asleep. 

"Where  are  we  going?"  he  said, 
drowsily. 

One  of  the  men  asked  him  in  a 
smooth  voice: 

"Where  is  your  home,,  my  lord?" 

"In  Naxos.    Take  me  to  Naxos." 

"Very  well,  you  shall  go  to  Naxos," 
said  the  man. 

He  went  to  the  rudder  where  the 
pilot  was. 

"Steer  north!"  he  commanded. 


154  Four  Old  Greeks 

"But  he  told  us  to  go  to  Naxos," 
said  the  pilot. 

"Do  as  I  tell  you!" 

"I  will  not!"  cried  the  pilot. 

"Then  I  will!"  and  the  man  pushed 
the  pilot  aside  and  took  the  rudder 
himself. 

Some  of  the  men  were  trying  to  put 
chains  on  Dionysos,  but  they  could  not 
do  it.  The  chains  would  not  fasten. 
The  men  looked  at  one  another  in 
wonder. 

"What  does  this  mean?"  they  were 
thinking. 

After  a  while  Dionysos  opened  his 
eyes  and  sat  up. 

"We  are  not  going  to  Naxos,"  he 
said,  and  he  was  almost  weeping. 

The  pirates  all  laughed.  Then  Dio- 
nysos stood  up.  He  looked  very  tall 
and  strong.  A  strange  smile  was  on  his 
face.  The  men  looked  at  him  and  they 
were  amazed.  They  saw  a  grapevine 
start  from  under  his  foot.  It  grew  like 
a  flash.     It  ran  up  the  mast. 

"It  is  twining  around  my  oar!"  cried 
one  man. 


The  Merry  Dionysos  155 

"It  has  hold  of  the  rudder.  I  can- 
not turn  it!"  shouted  the  man  who  was 
steering. 

".It  is  pulling  in  the  sail/'  said  the 
one  who  held  the  ropes. 

Indeed,  the  whole  ship  was  turned 
into  a  little  floating  vineyard.  Purple 
grapes  hung  everywhere;  vines  trailed 
through  the  water.  The  sailors  heard 
the  music  of  flutes  among  the  vines, 
and  all  at  once  the  ship  was  full  of 
Dionysos'  friends  —  fawns  and  tigers 
and  panthers  and  leopards.  The  men 
crawled  under  the  seats  from  fear. 

Dionysos  smiled  and  stroked  a  pan- 
ther's head  while  he  said: 

"Sailors,  I  am  Dionysos." 

No  one  dared  answer.  The  men  were 
more  frightened  than  ever.  They  were 
thinking: 

"What  will  he  do  to  us?" 

Dionysos  spoke  to  the  pilot: 

"Take  the  rudder  and  steer  for 
Naxos." 

The  pilot  hurried  to  do  it.  There 
were  no  sails  and  no  oars,  but  the  ship 
went    faster  than    any  ship    ever  went 


156  Four   Old  Greeks 

before.  Dionysos  walked  about  the  deck 
and  sang  gay  songs,  but  spoke  to  none  of 
the  sailors.  He  stroked  the  grape  leaves 
and  whispered  to  them  and  laughed. 
The  tigers  and  panthers  leaped  and 
played  around  him,  and  he  said  to  them : 

"We  will  show  these  sailors  some- 
thing, my  friends." 

When  the  sailors  heard  that,  their 
teeth  chattered. 

At  last  the  ship  ran  upon  a  sandy 
shore  and  stopped.  Dionysos  jumped 
out  and  called: 

"Come  on,  my  sailors." 

The  men  all  tumbled  out  in  a  hurry. 
They  were  w^hite  with  fear.  They  dared 
not  look  at  Dionysos,  He  took  hold  of 
the  end  of  the  ship  with  his  hand.  He 
gave  a  pull,  and  the  ship  came  out  of 
the  sand  and  up  on  the  green  shore. 
There  the  vine  rooted  in  the  ground. 
It  grew  in  a  second  all  over  a  hundred 
trees. 

Dionysos  pointed  to  it  and  said  to 
the  men: 

"Here  is  a  vineyard  for  you,  and  here 
are  some  jars." 


The  Merry  Dionysos  757 

And,  surely,  there  were  dozens  of  red 
jars  lying  on  the  grass. 

"This  is  in  return  for  your  kindness 
to  me." 

He  laughed  and  ran  into  the  woods, 
waving  his  hand  to  them.  The  panthers 
and  tigers  and  fawns  and  leopards  ran 
with  him.  The  pirates  all  stood  with 
open  mouths,  looking  after  him.  They 
could  hardly  believe  their  eyes  and  ears. 
At  last  they  turned  to  one  another  and 
said  in  whispers: 

"He  has  forgiven  us;  he  loves  us." 

Then  they  laughed  and  wept  with 
joy  and  they  danced  and  sang: 

"Dionysos  the  mighty!  Dionysos  the 
loving!  Dionysos  the  merry!  Dionysos 
who  gave  us  the  vine!  Dionysos  who 
saved  us!  We  will  love  him  always. 
We  will  tell  his  goodness  to  men.  We 
will  teach  all  people  to  love  him.  Dio- 
nysos, our  friend!     Evoe,  evoe!" 

And  so  they  did.  And  their  neigh- 
bors said  of  them: 

"They  are  good  men,  they  have 
given  us  great  blessings.  They  are  holy 
men,  the  friends  of  Dionvsos." 


158 


Four  Old  Greeks 


CHAPTER  VII. 

So  Dionysos  had  traveled  all  over 
the  world.  He  had  taught  all  men  how 
to  take  care  of  the  grapevine.  He  had 
built  many  cities.  He  had  taught  many 
people  to  make  jars  of  clay  and  to  eat 

at  tables  and  to 
dance  and  to  sing- 
joyful  songs.  Peo- 
ple were  sad  be- 
fore he  came,  but 
after  his  coming 
they  were  glad. 
And  Dionysos 
danced  and  sang 
with  the  gay 
nymphs  and  sa- 
tyrs. But  some- 
times he  was  sad,  thinking  of  Ariadne. 
One  day  he  called  all  the  nymphs 
and  satyrs  together. 

"We  have  given  the  sweet  grape  to 
everybody.  All  men  are  glad  now.  My 
father  Zeus  came  to  me  in  a  dream 
last  night.  He  said:  'Your  work  is 
done,  come  now  to  Olympos.     You  are 


HEAD  OF  DIONYSOS 
From  a  Greek  coin. 


The  Merry  Dionysos 


'59 


to  live  forever  with  the  Mighty  Ones  in 
heaven/  So  I  go  now.  I  will  always 
watch  you  from  Olympos;  I  will  send 
dew  and  heat  to  ripen  our  fruits.  Now 
a  dance  before  I  go." 

They  all  joined  hands  and  danced 
and  sang.     At  the  end  they  cried: 

"Dionysos!    Evoe,  evoe!    Dionysos!" 

As  they  shouted  that,  Dionysos  went 
away  and  up  to  Olympos.  He  could 
hear  them  shouting  all  the  distance. 

After  that  he  took  care  of  all  the 
grapes  and  fruits  in  the  world,  and  peo- 
ple loved  him  for  it.  The  grapes  were 
ripe  in  December.  The  rows  of  elm 
trees  were  full  of  them.  False  faces 
hung  among  the  vines,  to  scare  away 


DIONYSOS  IN  OLYMPOS 

He  is  riding  behind  his  leopards.    He  carries  the  pine-cone  staff* 
The  woman  nearest  him  carries  a  tambourine  and  a  torch. 


160  Four  Old  Greeks 

the  birds.  Early  in  the  morning  the 
farmer  and  his  wife  and  children  went 
to  the  vineyard.  They  put  wreaths  of 
ivy  on  their  heads,  to  make  them  cool. 
Everybody  brought  two  or  three  bas- 
kets. All  day  long  they  worked  and 
sang  there,  picking  the  grapes.  The 
boys  climbed  the  trees  for  the  high 
bunches. 

The  sun  was  setting  when  all  the 
grapes  were  gathered.  The  pickers  car- 
ried the  full  baskets  to  the  house.  Some 
of  the  grapes  were  pulled  off  the  stems; 
they  were  laid  on  clean  boards  and  put 
where  the  sun  would  shine  on  them. 
These  were  for  raisins.  Some  were 
cooked  for  the  winter  and  put  into  the 
store-room.  Wine  was  made  from  some 
and  poured  into  skin  bottles  or  into  red 
jars.  And  for  a  long  time  the  tables 
were  heaped  with  fresh  grapes. 

On  the  day  after  the  picking,  the 
neighbors  from  the  many  little  white- 
plastered  houses  on  the  hillsides  came 
together  for  a  holiday.  The  men  went 
into  the  woods  and  heaped  up  a  little 
mound  of  earth  and  covered  it  with  sod. 


The  Merry  Dionysos  161 

This  was  the  altar.  The  work  was 
hardly  finished  when  they  began  to 
hear  singing  and  laughing  from  all 
parts  of  the  woods,  Soon  women  and 
girls  and  old  men  and  boys  came  run- 
ning to  the  altar.  They  all  wore  their 
prettiest  clothes.  Everyone  carried  a 
basket  heaped  with  the  finest  oranges 
and  grapes  and  melons  and  figs.  Every 
head  was  crowned  with  ivy  or  with 
grapevine.  Some  of  the  boys  were 
wearing  the  false  faces  that  had  hung 
in  the  vineyard.  Some  of  the  girls  and 
young  men  had  brought  their  flutes. 
Women  carried  tambourines.  Many 
people  had  long  sticks  with  pine  cones 
at  the  end.  Everybody  was  laughing 
and  talking  of  the  good  harvest. 

After  a  while  a  priest  in  long  purple 
and  gold  robes  came  slowly  from  the 
woods.  The  people  were  quiet.  They 
fell  in  behind  him  and  all  marched 
around  the  altar  many  times.  Those 
with  flutes  walked  nearest  the  priest 
and  played  gay  music.  The  people  sang 
to  Dionysos: 

"The   grapes   are  gathered  in.     The 


162 


Four  Old  Greeks 


PROCESSION  OF 
Peleus  and  Thetis,  father  and  motlier  of  Achilles,  are  receiving  the  gifts. 

store-room  is  full  of  fruit.  We  are  ready 
for  winter.  Our  hard  work  is  over. 
Thanks  to  Dionysos.  Dionysos!  Thanks 
to  Dionysos/ ' 

At  last  the  procession  stopped.  The 
people  poured  all  the  fruit  from  their 
baskets  upon  the  altar.  They  killed  a 
goat  and  put  it  there,  too,  because  it 
had  nibbled  their  vines  and  had  tried 
to  kill  them.  Then  they  set  fire  to 
all  the  pile.  The  priest  stood  before  it 
and  raised  his  hands  in  prayer  to  Dio- 
nysos : 

"O,  Dionysos,  thou  loving  one,  giver 


The  Merry  Dionysos  i6j 


GIFT-BEARERS 
Just  such  processions  went  to  the  altars  of  Dionysos  and  of  Herakles. 

I 

of  the  vine,  bringer  of  joy,  ripener  of 
all  mellow  fruits,  hear  us!  We  thank 
thee  for  the  dew  and  the  fruits.  We 
thank  thee  for  gladness.  We  dance  and 
sing  for  thee.  We  burn  for  thee  this 
goat  and  these  fruits  that  thou  hast 
given  us.  I  pour  out  thy  wine.  May 
the  smell  be  sweet  to  thy  nostrils  and 
our  prayers  to  thy  ears ! " 

Then  all  the  people  sang  again 
of  the  goodness  of  Dionysos.  They 
told  stories  about  Dionysos.  The  boys 
in  false  faces  played  that  they  were 
satyrs. 


A   FLUTE  PLAYER  IN   THE  PROCESSION 
The  Greek  name  of  this  flute  was  tibia. 


The  Merry  Dionysos  165 

"We  are  the  jolly  friends  of  Diony- 
sos. We  followed  him  through  the 
whole  world.  We  were  there  when  he 
found  Ariadne,  beautiful  Ariadne." 

So  they  sang  as  they  danced.  Some- 
times a  young  man  would  play  that  he 
was  Dionysos.  Other  people  would  be 
the  pirates.     They  would  sing: 

"This  is  some  king's  son.  We  shall 
get  a  great  ransom  for  him." 

Then  they  would  carry  him  to  the 
ship.     The  women  would  sing: 

"Oh,  what  will  happen  to  Dionysos? 
The  pirates  have  taken  him  away." 

The  pirates  would  try  to  put  chains 
on  this  play-Dionysos. 

"We  cannot  do  it,"  they  would  sing, 
"the  chains  will  not  fasten." 

Then  Dionysos  would  stand  up  and 
sing  loudly: 

"No,  for  I  am  Dionysos." 

Then  all  the  people  shouted: 

"Dionysos!  It  is  Dionysos!  Evoe, 
evoe!     Dionysos!" 

They  ran  into  the  woods  and  waved 
branches  or  torches  or  the  pine-cone 
staves    over   their   heads.     The    women 


166  Four   Old  Greeks 

beat  upon  their  tambourines.  They  kept 
shouting : 

"Dionysos!  Bringer  of  joy!  Evoe, 
evoe! " 

A  poet  who  had  seen  this  festival 
many  times,  said  to  himself: 

"The  people  like  to  hear  these  sto- 
ries.    I  will  try  to  sing  them." 

So  next  year  at  the  festival  there  was 
somebody  that  looked  like  Dionysos. 
He  wore  rich  robes  like  Dionysos  and 
carried  a  staff  like  Dionysos.  He  wore  a 
mask,  so  that  his  face  looked  like  Dio- 
nysos' face.  He  had  blocks  under  his 
feet,  so  that  he  was  tall  like  Dionysos. 
He  stood  on  a  little  mound  of  earth,  so 
that  all  the  people  could  see  him.  He 
said  something  like  this: 

"My  cradle  was  a  corner  of  the  sky. 
Zeus  is  my  father.  Mount  Nysa  was 
my  home." 

Then  the  satyrs  danced  around  the 
mound  and  sang: 

"We  played  with  him  on  old  Mount 
Nysa.  We  ran  through  the  woods  with 
him  and  climbed  the  hills  and  hid  in 
the  caves." 


The  Merry  Dionysos 


i6y 


Dionysos:  The  nymphs  were  my 
nurses.  The  satyrs  were  my  playfel- 
lows. 

Satyrs:  Old 
Silenos  taught 
him  his  secrets. 
The  trees  talked 
with  him. 

Dionysos:  One 
day  I  found  the 
grapevine. 

And  so  they 
went  on  and  told 
the  whole  story. 
The  people  were 
delighted. 

"It  is  the  best 
thing  we  ever 
heard,' '  they  said ;  silenos 

"tell  us  the  story  again  next  year." 

So  he  told  it  next  year  and  the  next 
year.  People  came  from  far  and  near  to 
see  and  hear  it.  One  year  the  people 
from  the  city  said  to  the  poet: 

'  ■  Bring  your  satyrs  and  come  and  tell 
us  the  story." 

He  promised  to  do  so. 


168  Four  Old  Greeks 

■ -I  must  have  something  fine  to  show 
the  city  people,"  he  thought. 

He  spent  a  long  while  thinking  what 
to  do  and  what  to  say.  Then  he  and 
some  young  men  practiced  many  times. 
In  the  city  the  people  built  a  place  for 
the  play.  They  made  seats  in  the  shape 
of  a  half-circle.  The  lines  of  seats  rose 
one  above  another.  The  people  sat  here 
with  the  stage  in  front  of  them.  Every- 
body could  see  well. 

At  the  time  of  the  festival  the  poet 
and  his  men  came.  The  poet  himself 
played  Dionysos.  Another  man  was 
dressed  like  a  woman.  He  was  Ariadne. 
There  were  twelve  young  men  dressed 
like  satyrs.  So  they  acted  the  story. 
The  people  were  pleased  with  the  play. 

"Come  again  next  year,"  they  said. 

After  that  some  players  came  every 
year  to  the  city.  At  first  they  told  only 
the  stories  of  Dionysos.  Then  the  peo- 
ple said : 

"Tell  us  some  other  stories,  too." 

So  the  players  told  stories  of  Athene 
and  Herakles  and  Achilles  and  other 
great  people.    Besides  these  plays  in  the 


The  Merry  Dionysos  i6g 

theater  there  were  dances  and  songs 
and  processions  out  of  doors. 

This  festival  of  Dionysos  was  the 
merriest  time  of  all  the  year.  Indeed, 
it  was  almost  the  only  time  when  the 
women  went  out  of  the  house. 

The  next  story  tells  about  a  certain 
festival  that  people  had  in  the  city  of 
Athens  a  long  time  after  Dionysos  had 
gone  to  Olympos. 


THE  MUSE   OF   TRAGEDY 


How  Alkestis   Was  Saved      171 
HOW  ALKESTIS  WAS   SAVED 

A    Greek  Play. 

IT  was  a  dark  March  night  in  Athens. 
The  streets  were  filled  with  people. 
Every  housetop  was  covered  with 
men  and  women  and  children.  They 
were  all  laughing  and  talking.  Many  of 
them  carried  torches.  The  light  shone 
on  fauns  and  satyrs  and  men's  bodies 
with  the  heads  of  lions  or  of  donkeys. 
All  these  wild  creatures  were  dancing 
and  shouting. 

Somebody  called  from  a  housetop: 
"Ho,  ho!  There  is  Silenos!" 
The  man  threw  a  bunch  of  grapes 
at  the  old  satyr.  Then  everybody  in 
the  street  turned  and  laughed  and 
threw  fruit  and  flowers  at  Silenos.  He 
ran  away  and  hid  in  the  dark. 

"Make  way!  Here  we  come!"  and 
two  young  satyrs  came  jumping  among 
the  crowd. 

"And  here  you  stay!"  laughed  some 


ij2  Four  Old  Greeks 


fauns,  as  they  bound  the  satyrs  with 
grapevines. 

"Hello,  friend  Cleon!"  somebody  on 
a  housetop  called  down  to  a  satyr  in 
the  street. 

But  everybody  was  too  busy  making 
a  noise  to  hear  anything.  The  man 
laughed  to  himself.  He  dropped  a  string 
over  the  edge  of  the  roof.  There  was 
a  hook  at  the  end  of  it.  He  caught 
the  hook  in  the  frowsy  hair  of  the 
satyr.  Then  he  pulled.  Up  came  the 
ugly  mask.  There  was  a  handsome 
young  man  under  it.     He  cried: 

"Oh,  help!     I  am  losing  my  head." 

He  jumped  for  the  mask  and  shook 
his  fist  at  his  friend  and  laughed. 

"Come  down  and  have  some  fun," 
he  said. 

Then  somebody  came  running  down 
the  street,  calling: 

"Here  they  come!     Stand  back!" 

But  instead  of  standing  back  the 
people  crowded  into  the  middle  of  the 
street  to  see.  They  raised  their  torches 
high  above  their  heads  and  peered  into 
the    dark.     In    a    minute    a    procession 


How  Alkestis    Was  Saved      iyj 

came  around  a  turn  in  the  crooked 
street.  Young  men  were  dancing  along, 
waving  their  torches  and  singing.  There 
were  a  hundred  or  more  of  them.  In 
the  middle  of  the  procession  a  wooden 
statue  stood  high.  It  was  made  from 
the  trunk  of  a  grapevine.  The  light  of 
the  torches  flashed  on  it.  Four  young 
men  were  carrying  it.  Its  head  was 
crowned  with  ivy.  As  it  came  on,  the 
people  shouted: 

"Dionysos!    Dionysos!    Evoe,  evoe!" 

A  little  boy  on  a  housetop  jumped 
up  and  down  and  cried: 

"  Dionysos!  Oh,  I  love  you,  Dionysos! 
Here,  Dionysos,  here!"  and  he  threw 
kisses  at  the  statue. 

As  the  procession  passed  on,  all  the 
people  fell  in  behind.  They  marched 
through  the  dark  streets  and  up  to  the 
great  theater  on  the  side  of  the  Akrop- 
olis.  The  doors  were  opened  and  the 
procession  danced  in.  The  people  could 
see  only  a  little  way  about  them,  be- 
cause it  was  dark.  But  they  could  see 
the  sky  above  with  only  a  few  stars  in 
it.     The    torches    flared   on   the   empty 


*74 


Four  Old  Greeks 


stone  seats.  They  were  in  a  half-circle, 
going  back  and  tip.  In  front  was  a 
high  wall  with  a  narrow  stage.  Before 
the  stage  was  an  empty  circle  on  the 
floor.  There  the  young  men  set  the 
statue  of  Dionysos.  Then  they  danced 
around  it  and  sang: 

1 '  Dionysos  has  come  to  see  the  play. 
All  honor  to  Dionysos!    There  shall  be 


THE   THEATER  AS  IT  IS  NOW 

It  is  in  ruins.  The  wall  is  g07ie  from  the  front  and  from  the  sides 
where  the  gates  were.  The  seats  are  broken  and  some  have  been  hauled 
away  to  build  houses.  But  look  carefully  and  you  will  see  the  great 
half-circle  where  the  chorus  were  and  where  tlte  statue  was  set.  You 
will  see,  also,  the  rows  of  seats  and  the  aisles.  You  can  see  how  the 
theater  is  built  on  the  hillside.    The  little  shed  was  not  there  long  ago. 


How  Alkestis    Was  Saved     175 

songs  for  Dionysos,  and  dances  for  Dio- 
nysos,  and  plays  for  Dionysos.  All  the 
people  shall  have  a  holiday.  We  will 
all  be  gay  because  Dionysos  gives  us 
grapes,  because  Dionysos  loves  us." 

Then  they  danced  out  into  the  streets 
and  the  fun  went  on. 

Early  the  next  morning  great  crowds 
were  standing  at  the  doors  of  the  the- 
ater. The  sun  was  not  yet  up.  It  was  a 
noisy  crowd.  Men  and  women  and  boys 
and  girls  were  in  their  gayest  clothes. 
Rich  men  brought  their  servants  to  carry 
wine-skins  and  soft  cushions.  Men  from 
the  country  had  come  with  big  baskets 
of  fruit  and  were  selling  to  people. 

"We  shall  see  something  fine  to-day," 
said  one  man. 

"Yes, "answered  another.  "They  say 
that  Cleomenes  has  spent  much  money 
on  the  actors'  robes." 

"They  are  opening  the  doors!  They 
are  opening  the  doors!"  cried  the  crowd. 
"Here  we  go!" 

There  were  four  great  doors  to  the 
theater.  At  all  four  of  these  places  the 
people  were  packed  together.    Now,  just 


176 


Four   Old  Greeks 


as  the   sun  was   coming   up,  the   great 

doors  opened,  and  the  people  poured  in, 

pushing  and  laughing. 

There   was   no   roof   to  the   theater. 

The  seats  were  stone  benches,  close  to- 
gether. They 
were  like  steps 
leading  up,  and 
the  rows  were 
half  -  circles. 
The  aisles  were 
so  narrow  that 
only  one  man 
could  go  up  at 
a  time,  but  peo- 
ple ran  helter- 
skelter  over  the 
seats.  They  did 
not  wait  to 
walk  in  the 
aisles.  They  sat 


CHAIR  OF  THE  PRIEST  OF 

DIONYSOS 

The  name  of  the  priest  of  Dionysos  is 

carved  on  it  in  Greek  letters. 


wherever  they  pleased,  except  where 
some  seats  had  a  rope  stretched  around 
them.    A  guard  stood  here. 

"Keep  off!" he  shouted.  "These  seats 
are  for  the  officers  of  the  city." 

At    another    place   were    more   seats 


How  Alkestis   Was  Saved      177 

with  ropes  stretched  around  them.  The 
guard  there  kept  shouting: 

"These  seats  are  for  the  judges! 

All  the  front  row  was  for  the  priests. 

The  seats  here  were  marble  chairs, 
beautifully  carved. 

At  another  place  the  guard  was  shout- 
ing: 

"The  orphans  sit  here!" 

Because  if  a  man  died  in  battle  fight- 
ing for  Athens,  Athens  said: 

"We  will  take  care  of  his  little  son. 
We  will  buy  his  clothes  and  we  will 
send  him  to  school.  We  will  give  him 
a  seat  at  the  theater.' ' 

The  women  did  not  sit  with  the  men. 
They  went  away  up  in  the  back  of  the 
theater.  Many  people  had  come  from 
other  cities  to  see  the  plays.  They,  too, 
went  to  the  back  seats. 

It  must  have  been  fine  to  be  down 
in  front.  You  could  see  and  hear  well. 
But  it  was  fine  to  be  in  the  back  seats, 
too.  If  you  looked  ahead  you  saw  over 
the  front  wall  and  far  away.  There 
were  rocks  and  trees  and  country  roads 
and  farm  carts.    And  there  sparkled  the 


iy8  Four   Old  Greeks 

blue  ocean.  If  you  looked  down  into 
the  theater,  it  was  more  wonderful  yet. 
Thousands  and  thousands  of  people  — 
thirty  thousand!  There  were  circling 
rows  and  rows  and  rows  of  them.  Yel- 
low hair;  ivy  crowns  on  everybody's 
head;  floating  robes  of  purple,  white, 
red;  waving  arms.  It  was  like  a  big, 
dancing  rainbow.  And  the  noise!  — 
laughs,  songs,  shouts.  For  a  Greek  was 
always  talking  and  he  could  not  sit  still 
long  at  a  time. 

In  the  midst  of  all  the  noise  music 
sounded.  The  noise  stopped.  Every- 
body looked  toward  the  door.  In  came 
the  procession  of  the  great  men  of  the 
city.  They  were  walking  two  by  two. 
There  were  priests,  officers  of  Athens, 
messengers  from  other  cities,  and  the 
orphans.  The  guards  took  them  to  the 
seats  that  had  been  saved  for  them. 

The  priest  of  Dionysos  walked  into 
the  center  of  the  circle.  An  altar  was 
there.  The  statue  of  Dionysos  stood  by 
it.  The  priest  put  fruit  upon  the  altar. 
He  poured  wine  upon  it  and  he  set  fire 
to  it  all.    He  raised  his  hands  and  said: 


How  Alkestis   Was  Saved      iyg 

"O,  Dionysos!  we  thank  thee  for 
grapes.  We  thank  thee  for  dew.  We 
thank  thee  because  the  grapevines  are 
beginning  to  grow  again.  We  thank 
thee  for  song  and  dance.  We  are  glad 
to-day/ ' 

Then  all  that  great  audience  sang  to 
Dionysos 

When  the  song  was  over,  men  came 
carrying  heavy  loads  of  gold.  They  put 
the  gold  down  in  the  circle.  The  peo- 
ple cheered  when  they  saw  it.  Other 
cities  had  sent  it,  saying: 

"O,  Athens!  you  are  greatest,  you  are 
strongest.    Be  our  friend;  protect  us." 

And  the  Athenians  were  proud.  Men 
turned  to  people  next  them  to  talk  of  it. 

"Ah!  we  are  the  greatest  city  in  the 
world,"  they  were  saying.  "Our  army! 
Our  ships!" 

Many  things  kept  happening.  Sol- 
diers were  given  crowns  because  they 
had  been  brave.  The  judges  were 
chosen.  They  took  their  seats  down 
near  the  front.  Some  orphans  came 
upon  the  stage.  They  were  the  ones 
who   were   old    enough   to   be  soldiers. 


180  Four  Old  Greeks 

They  were  in  full  armor.  The  chief  of 
the  city  said: 

"You  are  no  longer  boys.  You  are 
citizens  of  Athens  —  men.  You  may 
speak  in  the  public  assembly.  You  may 
vote.  You  may  fight  for  Athens  as 
your  fathers  did." 

But  all  this  time  people  did  not  lis- 
ten.    They  made  a  great  deal  of  noise. 

"This  is  not  what  we  came  for," 
they  said. 

Besides,  the  people  in  the  back  seats 
could  not  see  or  hear  well,  for  they 
were  almost  a  block  away. 

But  at  last  the  herald  walked  up  the 
steps  of  the  stage.  All  the  noise  ceased. 
The  herald  shouted  his  loudest: 

"Euripides,  lead  on  your  chorus!" 

Euripides  was  the  poet  who  wrote 
the  plays  for  that  day. 

When  the  herald  said  that,  the  peo- 
ple cheered  and  jumped  to  their  feet  to 
see. 

"The  chorus  is  coming!"  they  cried. 

So  they  all  sat  down  and  the  play 
began.  There  were  three  long  plays. 
Sometimes    the    people    cheered,   some- 


How  Alkestis   Was  Saved      181 

times  they  wept,  sometimes  they  shouted 
to  the  actors.  There  was  no  time  to 
wait  and  rest.  But,  of  course,  the  peo- 
ple could  not  sit  still  all  that  time. 
They  would  take  their  luncheons  out 
and  eat.  Every  little  while  a  wine-cup 
would  flash  in  the  sun.  People  would 
get  up  and  walk  about  to  rest  them- 
selves. 

Three  long  plays  had  been  acted. 
The  curtain  at  the  back  of  the  stage 
rolled  down.  Another  curtain  rolled  up 
in  its  place.  On  it  was  the  picture  of 
the  front  of  a  great  palace.  There  were 
high  double  doors  in  the  middle.  There 
was  a  small  door  at  each  side.  When 
the  curtain  went  up  all  the  people 
stopped  their  talking.  They  settled 
down  in  their  seats  to  listen. 

Out  of  one  of  the  side  doors  walked 
an  actor. 

"Apollo!"  the  people  whispered. 

They  knew  him  by  the  bow  at  his 
back  and  by  his  long  golden  hair.  He 
was  bigger  than  a  man.  He  wore  shoes 
with  wooden  soles  a  foot  thick.  He 
wore  a  great  mask,  twice  as  long  as  his 


A    GREEK  ACTOR 


How  Alkestis   Was  Saved      183 

head.  His  body  was  padded.  All  this 
was  to  help  the  people  at  the  back  to 
see.  And  there  was  a  trumpet  inside 
the  mask.  That  was  to  help  the  people 
to  hear,  for  the  theater  was  very  large. 

Apollo  walked  slowly.  He  spoke  very 
slowly  and  very  loud,  so  that  everybody 
could  hear.  He  looked  at  the  palace 
and  chanted: 

"House  of  Admetos,  happy  days  have 
I  spent  here.  Much  I  love  your  lord 
Admetos.  I  leave  you  in  sorrow,  for 
Alkestis  must  die  to-day.  Long  ago  I 
heard  Death,  who  lives  under  the  earth, 
say,  'It  is  time  for  Admetos  to  die/ 
But  I  begged  him  to  wait,  because  I 
loved  Admetos.  'If  some  one  will  die 
instead  of  him,  will  you  let  Admetos 
live?'  I  asked.  At  last  he  said,  'Yes/ 
I  told  Admetos  what  Death  had  prom- 
ised, and  he  told  all  his  friends.  He 
went  to  his  servants  and  said,  'Have  I 
ever  done  any  good  thing  for  you?' 
They  answered,  'Indeed,  Admetos,  you 
have  given  us  life,  for  where  else  could 
we  get  food  or  home  but  from  you?' 
Then    he    asked,   'Will    you    do    me   a 


184  Four  Old  Greeks 

kindness  in  return?'  'Most  gladly/  they 
cried;  'what  can  we  do,  our  lord  Adme- 
tos?'  'Die  for  me,  that  I  may  live,'  he 
answered.  'Ah,  no  —  not  that;  we  can- 
not do  that.  No,  no!'  Then  he  asked 
his  father  and  his  mother  and  all  his 
friends.  They  would  not  do  it.  None 
of  those  who  ought  to  love  him  really 
loved  him  well  enough  to  die  for  him. 
None  except  his  young  wife,  beautiful 
Alkestis.  He  would  not  ask  her,  but  she 
came  to  me  and  said:  'Apollo,  tell  Death 
to  take  me.  I  am  of  little  account;  my 
lord  is  a  great  man  and  a  king.  And  I 
would  rather  die  than  stay  in  this  great 
house  alone  without  my  dear  lord.'  I 
told  Death,  and  he  accepted  her.  Now 
is  the  day  when  she  must  die.  I  can- 
not stay  to  see  it.    It  is  too  sad  a  thing." 

Then  he  turned  and  walked  slowly 
along  the  stage  toward  the  left  side.  A 
great  painting  of  trees  stood  there  at 
the  edge  of  the  stage.  He  walked  away 
behind  it. 

When  he  was  gone  the  people  said 
to  one  another: 

"Now  for  the  chorus!" 


How  Alkestis   Was  Saved      185 

They  looked  at  the  big  circle  in  front 
where  the  altar  and  statue  of  Dionysos 
were.  They  looked  at  the  great  doors 
on  each  side  of  it. 

1 '  Here  they  come ! ' '  shouted  the  people. 

The  chorus  was  walking  in  at  the 
western  side.  First  came  a  flute  player. 
Old  men  were  marching  behind  him  to 
his  slow  music.  They  were  in  a  solid  line 
of  threes.  There  were  fifteen  of  them. 
They  wore  long  gray  robes,  and  carried 
long  staffs.  They  walked  very  slowly 
into  the  circle  and  stood  in  front  of  the 
stage.  It  was  high  above  their  heads. 
Part  of  them  turned  to  the  other  part 
and  spoke. 

First  Semi-chorus :  What  is  happen- 
ing in  Admetos'  house? 

Second  Semi-chorus:  Do  you  hear 
weeping  ? 

First  Semi-chorus :    O,  unhappy  day! 

They  leaned  on  their  staffs.  They 
swayed  their  bodies  to  and  fro.  Their 
talking  was  like  a  very  slow  song,  a 
chant.   Thus  they  talked  back  and  forth. 

Second  Semi-chortis :  If  some  one 
could  only  save  her! 


A    FLUTE  PLAYER 
The  straps  are  to  hold  his  lips  steady  so  that  he  can  play  well. 


How  Alhestis   Was  Saved      i8y 

First  Semi-chorus:  Our  beautiful 
mistress! 

Second  Semi-chorus:  Our  good  Al- 
kestis! 

They  all  walked  back  and   forth  in 
front    of    the    stage.     They    kept    half 
turning  in  a  sad  dance. 
Chorus  : 

We  have  no  priest,  no  altar  more, 
Whose  aid  we  may  implore. 
To  every  god  at  every  shrine 
The  king  hath  paid  the  rites  divine. 
But  vain  his  vows,  his  loving  care, 
And  ours  is  dark  despair. 

A  door  opened  on  the  stage,  and  the 
chorus  looked  up. 

Leader  [pointing]:  See,  here  comes  a 
servant  out  of  the  door. 

Out  came  a  woman.  It  was  really  a 
man  dressed  like  a  woman.  He,  too, 
was  made  to  look  larger  than  life;  for 
he  wore  thick  soles  and  a  mask,  as 
all  actors  did.  And  all  actors  spoke 
very  loud  and  slowly,  to  make  them- 
selves understood.  Everything  was  slow 
—  the  walking,  the  talking,  and  the  ges- 
tures. 


188  Four   Old  Greeks 

Leader  [to  woman]  :  Tell  us,  is  Al- 
kestis  yet  alive? 

The  woman  waved  her  arms  and 
shook  her  head  sadly. 

Servant:     Only  half  alive. 

Leader :    How  does  she  bear  it? 

Servant:  To-day  she  went  about  the 
house  and  looked  at  all  the  things  she 
loved.  She  said  some  kind  word  to 
all  of  us  servants,  even  the  poorest  one. 
She  took  her  children  in  her  arms  and 
kissed  them. 

Leader :   But,  now,  what  is  she  doing? 

Servant:    Now  she  is  very  weak. 

Leader'    How  does  Admetos  feel? 

Servant:  He  sits  by  Alkestis  and 
weeps.  He  can  do  nothing,  he  is  so 
unhappy. 

Leader :  Unhappy,  indeed,  to  lose  so 
good  a  friend  as  Alkestis! 

Servant:  She  wishes  to  come  out  of 
doors  to  see  the  sun  for  the  last  time. 

The  servant  turned  and  walked  very 
slowly  through  the  door.  The  chorus 
broke  out  into  a  sad  chant.  They 
swayed  their  bodies  and  waved  their 
arms  as  they  sang. 


How  Alkestis   Was  Saved     i8g 


Chorus:  Alas,  alas!  Unhappy  Ad- 
metos!  Unhappy  country!  If  some  one 
could  only  save  this  dear  woman! 

Apollo  and  the  servant  had  come 
through  the  small  side  door.  Now  the 
great  double  doors  in  the  middle  of  the 
palace  moved.  The  leader  of  the  chorus 
pointed. 

Leader :    Look,  she  comes! 

The  great  doors  swung  wide  open. 
Out  came  a  sad  procession.  A  hum 
arose  from  the  people  in  the  seats. 
They  were  turning  to  say  to  one  an- 
other: 

"Alkestis!" 

And  there  she  was, 
leaning  on  Admetos, 
for  she  was  very 
sick.  She  was  tall 
like  a  woman  from 
Olympos,  and  Adme- 
tos was  tall,  too,  for 
they,  also,  wore  thick 
soles  and  masks. 

Alkestis'  robe  was 

pUrple  ;    her  XlimatlOn      The  viouth  of  every  mash  must 

i    •  j  j  11  be  oi>en  so  that  the  sound 

WaS    White    and    gOld.  may  come  out. 


igo  Four  Old  Greeks 

She  had  a  crown  on  her  head  because 
she  was  a  queen.  All  the  other  people 
on  the  stage  wore  black  or  gray  or 
brown  for  mourning. 

The  little  son  Eumelos  and  his  sister 
were  with  them.  The  little  girl  had 
her  hand  on  her  mothers  robe.  Serv- 
ants followed  them,  carrying  a  couch. 
All  were  walking  very  slowly.  Of 
course  they  could  not  weep,  because 
they  had  masks  on,  but  it  seemed  as 
though  they  were  all  weeping,  because 
they  moved  so  sadly. 

Inside  the  doors  of  the  palace  it  was 
dark;  outside  it  was  bright.  The  warm 
sun  was  on  Alkestis'  face.  The  breeze 
stirred  her  long  hair.  She  looked  up 
at  the  sky. 

Alkestis:  O  sun,  and  breeze,  and  fly- 
ing cloud! 

Admetos:  Stay  with  me,  Alkestis! 

Alkestis  did  not  hear.  She  looked 
around;  she  saw  the  rough  side  of 
the  Akropolis.  But  you  thought  that 
she  saw  the  country  in  front  of  her 
palace  —  the  woods,  the  roads,  and  the 
houses. 


How  Alkestis  Was  Saved      igi 

Alkestis :  O  earth,  where  I  have  been 
so  happy! 

Admetos:  We  never  can  be  happy 
without  you,  Alkestis. 

Slowly  Alkestis  turned  her  face  from 
looking  at  the  country  and  the  sky. 
She  looked  at  Admetos. 

Alkestis:  I  must  go;  Admetos;  I  have 
promised.  I  could  not  live  and  let  you 
die.  I  could  not  stay  without  you.  I 
could  not  let  you  leave  my  children 
without  a  father.  The  people  need  you. 
It  is  better  for  me  to  go. 

She  did  not  say  it  sadly.  A  woman 
on  one  of  the  back  seats  said  to  her 
friend : 

"She  is  not  afraid  to  die." 

Then  Alkestis  saw  her  children.  She 
put  her  hand  on  the  little  girl's  head. 

Alkestis:  But  my  children!  You 
must  love  them  well,  Admetos. 

Admetos:  I  cannot  be  their  mother, 
but  I  will  be  kind  to  them,  Alkestis. 

She  turned  the  little  girl's  face  up 
to  look  at  it 

Alkestis:  I  hope  that  you  will  be 
happy,  my  little  daughter. 


ig2  Four  Old  Greeks 

Admetos:  Stay  and  make  us  happy, 
Alkestis. 

She  did  not  hear.  She  was  still  look- 
ing at  her  children. 

Alkestis:    Good-by,  my  children! 

Admetos:  Alkestis!   Do  not  leave  us! 

Alkestis  [turning  to  Admetos]:  Good- 
by,  Admetos! 

She  sank  upon  the  couch.  The  cho- 
rus waved  their  arms. 

Leader:    She  is  gone. 

Little  Eumelos  put  his  hand  on  her 
shoulder.     He  looked  into  her  face. 

"Mother!"  he  called. 

Then  he  looked  up  at  his  father  and 
said: 

"She  is  dead!" 

"Sister,"  he  said,  very  sadly,  turning 
to  his  little  sister,  "we  have  no  mother 
any  more." 

Admetos  [holding  out  his  hands  to 
chorus]:    She  is  gone. 

He  threw  his  hands  over  his  head. 

Admetos:  O,  let  my  country  mourn! 
There  never  was  another  woman  half 
so  good  as  my  Alkestis.  Let  my  people 
dress    in   black   and   cut   their  hair  in 


How  Alkestis   Was  Saved      igj 

sign  of  sorrow.  Let  the  manes  of  the 
horses  be  sheared.  Let  no  joyful  music 
be  heard.  We  never  can  be  happy 
again  without  this  dear  woman. 

Then  he  turned  to  the  servants. 

Admetos:  Let  us  take  her  into  the 
house. 

The  servants  lifted  the  couch  and 
carried  Alkestis  into  the  house.  Adme- 
tos and  his  children  followed  slowly, 
with  bowed  heads.  The  great  doors 
closed  behind  them.  The  people  in  the 
seats  heaved  a  great  sigh.  Many  were 
weeping. 

Then  the  chorus  lifted  their  heads  and 
sang  to  the  playing  of  the  flute  as  they 
walked  back  and  forth  before  the  stage. 

Chorus  [singing]: 

Our  lady,  Alkestis,  good  and  brave, 
Men  will  pray  for  wives  like  you; 
Bards  will  strike  their  lyres  and  sing, 
"Alkestis,  queen  of  women  !  " 

They  stood  still  with  bowed  heads. 
The  people  in  the  seats  were  perfectly 
quiet.  Then  they  heard  a  loud  voice 
singing: 

"Ho,  ho-ho,  ho!" 


i<?4  Four  Old  Greeks 

The  sounds  came  from  behind  the 
trees  at  the  east  end  of  the  stage.  In 
a  minute  a  great  man  walked  on  from 
behind  them.  He  wore  a  lion's  skin 
and  carried  a  club. 

"Herakles!"  the  people  shouted. 

They  jumped  to  their  feet.  Women 
snatched  off  their  himations  and  waved 
them.  Boys  waved  their  cloaks.  Men 
clattered  their  wooden  sandal-heels 
against  the  stone  seats.  They  threw 
flowers. 

"Herakles!  Herakles!"  they  shouted. 

They  would  not  be  quiet.  One  man 
said  to  another: 

"Now  we  are  all  right.  Herakles  is 
here.     Oh,  how  big  he  is!" 

When  at  last  the  place  was  quiet, 
Herakles  called  to  the  chorus. 

Herakles:  Hello!  Who  is  here?  Tell 
me,  my  friends,  is  Admetos  in  his  house? 

Chorus  [to  one  another]:  It  is  Her- 
akles! 

Then  the  leader  answered  him. 

Leader:  Admetos  is  in  his  house.  But 
why  are  you  here,  Herakles?  What  is 
the  brave  thing  you  are  going  to  do? 


How  A  Ikes  Us  Was  Saved     igs 

Herakles:  Oh,  it's  nothing  very  great. 
I  am  on  my  way  to  get  some  wild 
horses  for  Eurystheus. 

He  tossed  his  club  from  one  hand  to 
the  other. 

The  chorus  turned  to  one  another. 
They  threw  up  their  hands  in  wonder 
and  fear. 

Leader  [to  Herakles]:  The  horses  of 
Diomedes  in  Thrace? 

Herakles:    Yes. 

The  chorus  stepped  back  and  dropped 
their  hands. 

Leader:  But  they  eat  men  as  lions  do. 

Herakles  struck  his  hands  on  the 
lion's  paws  under  his  chin. 

Herakles:  I  have  fought  with  lions 
and  am  yet  alive. 

Leader:  They  breathe  out  fire  from 
their  nostrils. 

Herakles:  I  will  get  them  for  all 
that. 

He  swung  his  club  gayly.  He  turned 
toward  the  palace. 

Herakles:    But  where  is  Admetos? 

The  leader  pointed  to  the  great  doors. 
They  were  opening. 


ig6  Four  Old  Greeks 

Leader:  Look!  he  comes  out  of  his 
house. 

Admetos  came  slowly;  a  servant  fol- 
lowed him.  Admetos'  head  was  bowed. 
He  wore  a  long  black  robe.  He  stopped 
and  sadly  lifted  his  head  and  saw  Her- 
akles.  Then  he  stepped  forward  and 
raised  his  hand. 

Admetos:  Welcome  to  my  house, 
Herakles. 

Herakles:   Hail!  friend  Admetos. 

It  was  a  big,  brave,  gay  voice. 

Herakles:  But  you  are  dressed  in 
mourning. 

Admetos:  Some  one  lies  dead  in  the 
house. 

Herakles:  I  hope  it  is  none  of  your 
children. 

Admetos:  No,  they  are  well;  it  is  a 
woman. 

Herakles:   Some  near  relative? 

Admetos:  She  came  from  another 
house. 

Herakles:  It  is  not  your  wife,  then, 
the  beautiful  Alkestis. 

His  voice  told  how  glad  he  was. 

Herakles :  But,  my  friend,  I  am  sorry 


How  Alkestis  Was  Saved     igy 

to  find  you  sad.  I  had  hoped  to  stay 
with  you. 

Admetos:  And  so  you  shall. 

Herakles:  Not  when  you  have  this 
sorrow. 

Admetos:  We  will  forget  our  sorrow. 
Never  will  I  turn  a  guest  away  from 
my  house. 

Herakles :  I  will  come  sometime  when 
you  are  not  so  unhappy. 

Admetos:  You  must  stay  now,  Hera- 
kles. We  have  a  room  away  from  the 
rest  of  the  house.  The  mourning  will 
not  disturb  you  there.  I  cannot  let 
you  go. 

Herakles:  Well,  since  you  wish  it,  I 
will  stay. 

Admetos  turned  to  the  servant. 

Admetos:  Take  Herakles  to  the 
guest-chamber.  Tell  the  servants  to 
spread  a  banquet  for  him.  Stay  and 
wait  upon  him  and  make  him  comfort- 
able. 

Herakles:  I  thank  you  for  your  kind- 
ness, Admetos. 

He  clapped  his  great  hand  lovingly 
on  Admetos'  shoulder. 


ig8  Four  Old  Greeks 

Admetos:  I  will  come  to  see  you  soon. 

Then  Herakles  walked  in  through  the 
side  door.  Admetos  turned  and  watched 
him.  People  in  the  seats  were  saying  to 
themselves: 

4 'Stay,  Herakles!  You  are  so  good  to 
look  at!" 

When  Herakles  was  gone,  the  leader 
of  the  chorus  spoke  to  Admetos. 

Leader:  How  could  you  be  thought- 
ful for  a  guest,  when  you  are  so  un- 
happy, Admetos? 

Admetos  turned  slowly  around  to 
answer. 

Admetos:  Could  I  send  him  away  to 
find  rest  and  banquet  in  some  strangers 
house?  A  guest  is  always  welcome  here. 

Leader:  Why  did  you  not  tell  him 
that  it  is  Alkestis  who  is  dead? 

Admetos:  If  he  had  known  that  my 
sorrow  is  so  great  he  would  not  have 
come  in.  Now  I  will  go  back  to  Alkes- 
tis.   We  will  take  her  to  the  grave  soon. 

He  turned  and  walked  through  the 
great  doors.  It  was  a  brave  thing  to 
keep  back  his  tears  and  welcome  a  vis- 
itor.  Thus  the  chorus  thought  and  sang. 


How  Alkestis   Was  Saved      igg 

Chorus: 
Oh,  generous  house !  Oh,  generous  king ! 
To  many  a  stranger,  many  a  guest 
The  gate  has  opened,  the  feast  been  spread. 
Travelers  and  beggars  have  eaten  and  slept. 
And  now  Admetos  is  weary  and  sad, 
Yet  he  spreads  the  feast  and  welcomes  the  guest. 

The  flute  played.  The  music  was  not 
so  sad  as  it  had  been  before.  The  chorus 
moved  their  staffs  in  time  with  it.  They 
danced  about  the  altar  of  Dionysos.  At 
the  end  of  the  song  the  great  doors 
opened  again.  The  leader  of  the  chorus 
pointed. 

Leader:  But  look!  Here  comes  the 
funeral  train.  They  are  taking  Alkestis 
to  the  grave. 

Out  came  the  procession.  All  the 
people  wore  long  robes  of  black  or 
gray.  First  came  four  servants  carry- 
ing a  litter  with  Alkestis  lying  on  it. 
Admetos  and  his  children  and  his 
servants  followed.  They  walked  along 
the  stage  and  off  past  the  trees  at  the 
west.  As  they  passed,  the  chorus  sang 
again,  stretching  their  hands  toward 
Alkestis. 


200  Four  Old  Greeks 

Chorus: 
Dear  lady,  farewell !  Alkestis,  farewell ! 
Your  kindness,  your  courage,  your  wonderful  love 
For  the  king,  for  us,  we  shall  never  forget. 
We   shall  miss   you,  Alkestis;    shall  miss  you, 
Alkestis. 

There  were  steps  leading  from  the 
circle  to  the  stage.  The  chorus  walked 
up  these  steps  and  followed  the  pro- 
cession slowly.  At  last  the  stage  was 
empty.  The  people  in  the  seats  were 
still  and  sad,  waiting  for  what  should 
happen. 

All  at  once  a  servant  came  out  of  the 
side  door  of  the  palace.  He  was  old  and 
cross.  He  swung  his  hand  back  toward 
the  doors. 

Servant:  Who  can  this  boisterous 
fellow  be?  It  makes  no  difference  to 
him  that  we  are  all  unhappy.  He  eats 
enough  for  ten  men;  he  pounds  the  table 
with  his  fists  and  shouts,  "Ho,  ho!  but 
this  meat  tastes  good  to  a  hungry  man. 
Why,  this  is  the  first  meal  I've  had  to- 
day/ ■  Then  he  drinks  down  a  cup  of 
wine  at  one  swallow.  He  tells  the  maid- 
servant,  "Make  me  a  garland  for  my 


How  Alkestis   Was  Saved      201 

head."  She  makes  one,  and  he  sets  it 
crooked  on  his  head  and  sings  a  merry 
song.  And  all  the  while  our  hearts  are 
breaking  because  Alkestis  is  dead. 

The  servant  looked  off  down  the 
road  where  they  had  taken  Alkestis. 

Servant:  She  was  a  mother  to  us  all. 
When  we  were  sick  she  nursed  us; 
when  we  were  unhappy  she  cheered  us. 
She  was  always  gentle  with  us.  Oh, 
my  dear  mistress! 

He  stretched  his  hands  after  her. 

The  side  door  of  the  palace  opened 
again.  Out  walked  Herakles.  Again 
the  people  shouted: 

" Herakles!  Herakles!  Oh,  you  are 
back!    Good,  good!" 

There  was  a  garland  of  flowers  on 
his  head.  It  sat  crooked  and  looked  as 
though  he  had  been  having  a  romp. 
He  carried  a  wine-cup  in  his  hand.  He 
shouted  loudly  at  the  servant  and  rolled 
his  jolly  head. 

Herakles:  Hello,  fellow !  what  makes 
you  look  so  gloomy?  Ho,  ho!  This  is 
not  the  way  to  treat  a  guest.  I  am  a 
friend  of  your  lord;  he  wants  you  to 


202  Four  Old  Greeks 

make  me  happy.  Are  you  gloomy 
because  somebody  is  dead? 

He  beckoned  to  the  servant. 

Herakles:  Come  here  and  let  me  tell 
you  something. 

The  servant  came.  Herakles  dropped 
his  big  hand  on  the  man's  shoulder. 

Herakles:  It  does  no  good  to  be  sad. 
Cheer  up! 

He  shook  him  by  the  shoulder  and 
laughed. 

Herakles;  Put  a  garland  on  your 
head;  take  a  drink  of  wine  and  you 
will  feel  better,  I  am  sure.  Be  happy, 
my  friend;  it  does  no  good  to  mourn,  I 
tell  you. 

But  the  old  servant  did  not  like  it. 
He  stepped  back  and  turned  away. 

Servant:  Perhaps  that  is  true,  but  I 
cannot  help  being  sad  when  so  great  a 
sorrow  comes. 

Herakles:  So  great  a  sorrow?  It  was 
only  some  stranger.  It  might  have  been 
worse.  You  ought  to  be  thankful  that 
your  master  and  mistress  are  still  alive. 

The  servant  turned  and  looked  at 
Herakles  for  a  minute. 


How  Alkestis   Was  Saved      203 

Servant:  My  mistress?  What  do  you 
mean  ? 

Herakles:  Did  Admetos  deceive  me? 
Is  not  Alkestis  well? 

Servant:   It  is  Alkestis  that  is  dead. 

The  cup  that  Herakles  was  holding 
fell  from  his  hand  with  a  crash. 

Herakles:  What  do  you  say?  Alkes- 
tis is  dead?  And  could  he  be  thought- 
ful and  kind  to  me  when  he  was  so 
unhappy?  I  ought  to  have  known  it. 
His  eyes  were  red  with  tears. 

Herakles  stamped  his  foot.  He  struck 
his  fist  on  his  breast. 

Herakles:  And  I  have  been  shouting 
and  singing  and  feasting  in  the  house, 
and  he  has  been  weeping  all  this  time. 

When  Herakles  said  that  he  tore  the 
garland  from  his  head  and  threw  it  to 
the  floor.  He  trampled  on  it  with  his 
foot.  Then  he  turned  to  the  servant 
and  held  out  his  hand. 

Herakles:  Forgive  me,  my  friend!  I 
do  not  wonder  that  you  were  unhappy. 
It  was  a  shame  for  me  to  be  laughing 
in  this  sad  house.  But  tell  me  where 
she  is. 


204  Four   Old  Greeks 

Servant:  They  have  taken  her  to  the 
grave.     It  is  down  that  road. 

Then  the  servant  walked  sadly  into 
the  house. 

Herakles  looked  off  down  the  road. 
He  tightened  the  lion's  legs  around  his 
neck.  He  stretched  his  great  arms  and 
rubbed  his  muscles.  He  threw  the  club 
over  his  shoulder. 

Herakles  [talking  to  himself] :  Now, 
Herakles,  do  something  worthy  of  your- 
self. You  find  your  friend  in  sorrow; 
can  you  not  do  something  for  him? 
You  have  strangled  lions.  Why  not 
catch  Death  and  wrestle  with  him? 

He  walked  about  and  thought. 

Herakles:  I  will  stand  by  the  grave 
and  wait  for  him.  When  he  comes  I 
will  rush  upon  him  ;  I  will  seize  him 
around  his  waist  and  throw  him  to  the 
ground.  I  will  hold  him  there  until  he 
promises  to  give  Alkestis  to  me.  Then 
I  will  bring  her  back  and  give  her  to 
my  dear  friend,  Admetos. 

He  went  off  down  the  road.  The  old 
servant  looked  after  him  for  a  minute, 
and   then  went   back   into   the  palace. 


How  Alkestis   Was  Saved     205 

The  stage  was  empty.  The  people  in 
the  seats  were  waiting.  It  was  very 
quiet.  Then  the  children  and  the  serv- 
ants who  had  taken  away  Alkestis  came 
back  and  went  into  the  palace  through 
the  side  doors.  The  chorus  came  walk- 
ing sadly  on  with  their  himations  over 
their  heads.  The  long  line  went  down 
the  steps  into  the  circle.  Again  the 
stage  was  empty.  Again  the  people  sat 
still  and  waited.  At  last  Admetos  came. 
He  walked  very  slowly.  His  chin  was 
on  his  breast.  He  stopped  in  front  of 
the  doors.  He  threw  his  hands  over 
his  head  and  let  them  drop  again.  He 
sang  a  high,  shrill  chant 

Admetos:  Oh,  how  I  hate  this  house! 
There  is  no  one  here  now  that  I  love. 
No  one  meets  me  at  the  door.  I  shall 
see  her  chair  empty. 

He  put  his  hands  over  his  face. 

Leader:   Go  in,  Admetos,  and  rest. 

He  answered  without  uncovering  his 
face. 

Admetos:   I  cannot  go  in. 

Leader :  Other  people  have  been  un- 
happy, Admetos. 


206  Four  Old  Greeks 

Admetos:  Alkestis! 

He  reached  out  his  arms.  It  was 
as  though  he  thought  that  Alkestis  was 
standing  in  the  door. 

Leader :   Go  in  and  see  your  children. 

Admetos:  They  will  clasp  my  hands 
and  cry  for  their  mother. 

Admetos  stood  silent  for  a  long  time. 
Then  he  turned  and  looked  down  the 
road. 

Admetos:  I  remember  when  I  walked 
with  her  along  this  road  for  the  first 
time.  I  was  bringing  her  from  her  fath- 
er's house  to  our  own  new  home.  She 
wore  a  purple  robe  trimmed  in  silver. 
My  robe  was  white  and  gold.  The  peo- 
ple were  singing  joyful  songs  and  scat- 
tering flowers  in  our  path.  Now  I  am 
dressed  in  black,  and  I  enter  the  house 
alone.     Oh,  Alkestis! 

Leader:  This  is  not  an  unexpected 
sorrow  ;  you  have  known  for  a  long  time 
that  it  was  to  happen.  Be  thankful 
that  you  are  still  alive. 

Admetos  turned  quickly  and  spoke  to 
the  leader.    His  voice  was  like  thunder. 

Admetos:    What  do  you  say?    I  hate 


How  Alkestis   Was  Saved      207 

myself;  I  was  a  coward!  I  let  her  die 
for  me;  I  was  afraid  to  die.  I  did  not 
dare  to  say,  '  'Apollo,  Death  shall  take 
me;  I  cannot  let  Alkestis  do  it"  I  was 
not  brave  enough  to  say  that.  Oh,  it  is 
better  to  die  than  to  be  without  Alkes- 
tis. But  I  did  not  know  this  before. 
Now  it  is  too  late. 

When  he  said  that  he  covered  his 
face  with  his  hands. 

Then  Herakles  came  from  behind 
the  trees. 

"He  has  got  her!"  the  people  in  the 
seats  shouted.    "Bravo,  Herakles!" 

And  surely,  he  led  a  woman  by  the 
hand.  Her  himation  was  thrown  over 
her  head  and  face,  but  the  people  knew 
her  by  her  robe  of  purple  and  her  hima- 
tion of  white  and  gold. 

Admetos  still  stood  with  his  hands 
over  his  face.  Herakles  looked  at  him 
for  a  minute.  Then  he  spoke.  His 
voice  was  very  kind. 

Herakles:  Admetos,  I  am  sorry  that 
you  did  not  tell  me  that  it  was  Alkes- 
tis who  was  dead.  I  was  eating  -  and 
singing  and  laughing  in  your  house.     I 


208  Four  Old  Greeks 

did  not  know  that  you  had  so  great  a 
sorrow.  But  I  must  tell  you  why  I 
have  come  back.  As  I  walked  along  the 
road  I  met  a  certain  person  and  had  a 
wrestling  match  with  him.  I  won  and 
got  this  woman  for  a  prize.  Keep  her 
for  me.  When  I  come  back  from  Thrace 
I  will  stop  and  take  her  again. 

Admetos  uncovered  his  face  to  look. 
He  did  not  know  Alkestis.  He  was  too 
sad  to  notice  well. 

Admetos:  Do  not  ask  me  to  do  that. 
I  will  do  anything  else  for  you,  Her- 
akles.  Ask  some  other  friend  to  keep 
her.  I  should  be  weeping  always  if  I 
saw  her  about  the  house  where  Alkes- 
tis used  to  be. 

Then  quickly  he  flung  out  his  hands 
toward  Herakles.  When  he  spoke  his 
voice  was  shrill. 

Admetos:  What  if  she  should  sit  in 
Alkestis'  chair !  I  could  not  bear  to  see 
her. 

Then  he  looked  at  the  woman.  The 
people  in  the  seats  caught  their  breath. 

"Now  he  will  know  her/'  they 
thought. 


How  Alkestis   Was  Saved      209 

But  he  did  not. 

Admetos:  Indeed,  she  looks  like  my 
Alkestis.  She  is  just  as  tall,  and  she 
walks  like  her.  Think,  Herakles,  how 
unhappy  it  would  make  me  to  have  her 
always  reminding  me  that  I  shall  never 
see  Alkestis  again. 

Herakles:  It  will  spoil  your  life  if 
you  always  mourn  for  Alkestis. 

Admetos:  My  life  is  already  spoiled, 
because  she  is  dead. 

Herakles:  After  a  while  you  will  be 
happier. 

Admetos:  I  never  can  be  happy 
without  Alkestis. 

Herakles:  You  will  find  new  friends 
and  forget  her. 

Admetos:  I  never  can  forget  her;  I 
shall  love  her  always. 

Herakles:  Keep  this  woman  for  me, 
Admetos. 

Admetos:    I  cannot. 

Herakles:  You  will  be  doing  me  an 
unkindness  if  you  refuse. 

Admetos:  I  wish  you  never  had 
received  the  prize! 

All  this  time  Admetos  stood  turned 


210  Four    Old   Greeks 

away  from  Herakles.  His  head  was 
bowed.  Herakles  still  held  the  woman's 
hand.  He  watched  Admetos.  It  seemed 
almost  as  though  he  were  smiling. 

Herakles:  If  you  love  me,  Admetos, 
take  her.  You  will  not  be  sorry.  It  is 
a  little  thing  to  do ;  come ! 

He  held  out  his  hand  to  Admetos. 
Admetos  turned  slowly  and  stepped 
away  from  the  door. 

Admetos;  Well,  then,  lead  her  in.  It 
breaks  my  heart  to  see  her,  but  I  can- 
not refuse  to  do  you  a  kindness. 

Herakles:  No,  you  yourself  must  lead 
her  in. 

Herakles  stepped  toward  the  king. 
The  woman  followed.  Herakles  held 
out  his  hand  again.  Admetos  stepped 
back  quickly  and  put  his  hands  behind 
him. 

Admetos:  I  wouldlnot  touch  her.  Let 
my  servants  take  her. 

Herakles:  Let  servants  take  care  of 
her?  She  is  too  precious  for  that.  I 
will  trust  her  to  nobody  but  you,  my 
friend. 

Admetos:    Herakles,   I   once   led   my 


How  Alkestis   Was  Saved     211 

Alkestis  into  this  house.  I  will  never 
lead  any  other  woman  in. 

Herakles:  Come,  put  out  your  hand. 
I  ask  it  as  a  kindness.  Give  me  your 
hand. 

Herakles  was  close  to  Admetos  now. 
He  was  looking  down  on  the  king  and 
still  holding  out  his  great  hand.  There 
was  a  little  laugh  in  his  voice. 

Admetos  stood  looking  up  into  Her- 
akles' kind  face.  Then  he  heaved  a 
sigh  and  put  out  his  hand. 

Admetos:  For  your  sake,  then,  I  will 
do  it,  Herakles,  though  it  breaks  my 
heart.     Here  is  my  hand. 

"Ah!"  said  the  people  in  the  seats. 

"Who  could  refuse  Herakles ?"  men 
whispered. 

Herakles:  And  here  I  put  this 
woman's  hand  in  yours.  Have  you  hold 
of  her? 

Admetos:    Yes. 

Herakles:  Then  hold  her  fast,  Adme- 
tos, and  never  let  her  go.  Look  at  her 
and  see  whether  you  will  thank  Her- 
akles for  bringing  her? 

He  lifted  the  veil  from  the  woman's 


212  Four  Old  Greeks 

face.  There,  beautiful  and  still,  was 
Alkestis. 

The  people  in  the  seats  almost 
shouted,  but  they  waited  to  see  what 
Admetos  would  say. 

He  looked  at  her  long.  He  still  held 
her  hand. 

Admetos;    Alkestis ! 

It  was  almost  a  whisper. 

Admetos:  It  cannot  be  so;  it  is  a 
ghost. 

Then  Herakles  laughed  his  loud 
laugh. 

Herakles;  I  have  brought  you  no 
ghost,  my  friend.  Put  your  hand  on 
her  face.  Is  she  not  real  flesh  and 
blood? 

Admetos  did  put  his  hand  on  her 
face. 

Admetos  [crying  out] :  Alkestis,  I  have 
you  again!    I  will  never  let  you  go. 

He  held  both  her  hands  tightly  in 
his.     He  looked  and  looked  at  her. 

Herakles:    Guard  her  well,  Admetos. 

Admetos:  Oh,  Alkestis!  I  am  cured 
of  being  a  coward.  I  will  never  lose 
you  again. 


How  Alkestis   Was  Saved     213 

But  she  only  stood  still  and  looked 
at  him. 

"Why  doesn't  she  speak ?"  said  a 
woman  on  one  of  the  back  seats. 

"She  is  too  tired  and  too  happy," 
replied  another. 

"She  is  just  come  back  from  the 
grave,' '  said  another. 

"What  must  she  be  thinking?"  one 
whispered. 

Then  Admetos  turned  to  Herakles. 

Admetos:  But  how  did  you  do  this 
wonderful  thing,  Herakles? 

Herakles:  Oh,  I  waited  at  the  grave. 
When  Death  came,  I  rushed  at  him.  I 
seized  him  around  the  waist  and  threw 
him  to  the  ground.  I  held  him  until  he 
cried,  "Mercy!  Take  Alkestis  and  let 
me  go."  So  I  took  her  and  brought  her 
to  you.     Now  I'm  off  to  Thrace. 

He  swung  his  club  and  laughed. 

Admetos:  Stay  with  us  for  a  while, 
Herakles.  Feast  and  rest  in  our  house. 
Let  us  try  to  thank  you. 

Herakles:  Some  other  time.  Now 
there  is  no  rest  for  me.  I  have  a  work 
to  do. 


214  Four  Old  Greeks 

Admetos:  Some  other  time,  then.  But 
come  to  us  soon,  Her akles. 

Herakles:  Good-by,  friends!  When 
shall  I  come  and  take  back  my  prize, 
Admetos?  Oh,  ho!  that  was  a  jolly 
wrestling  match.  Oh,  ho!  That's  the 
kind  of  thing  I  like  to  do. 

Off  he  went  behind  the  trees  to  the 
east,  singing.  Everybody  looked  after 
him.  The  people  in  the  seats  shouted 
his  name  and  waved  their  garlands. 

At  last  Admetos  turned  to  the  chorus. 

Admetos:  And  now  let  all  my  coun- 
try rejoice.  Let  all  the  people  come  to 
my  palace  and  feast  and  dance.  Let  the 
poets  sing  how  Herakles  fought  for  us 
and  gave  us  back  our  Alkestis.  Come, 
my  dear  wife ;  let  me  lead  you  into  the 
house.  I  will  seat  you  in  your  chair; 
I  will  bring  our  children  to  you.  We 
shall  be  happier  than  we  ever  were  be- 
fore. 

Then  he  led  Alkestis  through  the 
great  doors.     The  stage  was  empty. 

The  chorus  danced  about  the  altar 
and  waved  their  arms  and  sang  a  song 
of  joy. 


How  Alkestis   Was  Saved     215 

Chorus  : 

Herakles !  Herakles ! 
Glory  to  him,  the  mighty,  the  worker ! 

Herakles !  Herakles ! 
Lover  of  men,  friend  of  Admetos ! 

Herakles !   Herakles ! 

Whenever  they  said  "Herakles,"  they 
waved  their  arms  high  and  turned  in 
the  dance.  At  the  end  they  formed  in 
lines  of  threes  and  marched  off  out  of 
the  circle. 

The  leader  stayed.  As  the  others 
went  away,  he  turned  to  the  people  in 
the  seats  and  spoke  to  them.  There  was 
laughter  in  his  voice. 

Leader:  It  is  always  like  this.  What 
we  think  will  happen  does  not  happen. 
What  we  dare  not  hope  for  comes  true. 
So  has  it  been  on  this  happy  day. 

Thus  the  play  ended. 

The  people  went  wild  with  joy.  They 
talked  about  the  play.  They  talked 
about  the  poet.     They  shouted: 

"Euripides!  Alkestis!" 

They  sang  songs  about  Herakles. 
They  looked  at  the  judges  sitting  down 
in  front. 


2l6 


Four  Old  Greeks 


" Remember,  you  judges,"  some  peo- 
ple cried,  "  Euripides  is  to  have  the 
prize/ ' 

Then  they  went  home,  shouting  and 
singing  all  the  way. 

On   other   days   there  were  plays  of 


A  POET  TRAINING  A  CHORUS 

Some  of  these  young  men  are  flaying-  satyrs.    You  can  see  that  the  dress 

of  the  theater  had  sleeves.     The  every -day  Greek  dress  had  none. 

other  poets.  At  the  end  of  it  all  the 
judges  decided  who  was  the  best  poet. 
Then  that  poet  went  upon  the  stage, 
and  the  chief  of  the  city  put  an  ivy 
crown  upon  his  head.  How  the  people 
shouted! 


How  Alkestis   Was  Saved     217 

One  day  there  was  another  great  pro- 
cession. Everybody  wore  a  mask  and 
played  that  he  was  Dionysos  or  a  faun 
or  a  satyr.  There  were  flute-players,  and 
women  clashing  cymbals,  and  men  wav- 
ing pine-cone  staffs,  and  girls  throwing 
flowers.  Everybody  in  Athens  walked 
in  the  procession  and  danced  and  sang 
and  wore  his  finest  clothes. 

Then  on  another  day  there  was  a 
great  dance  in  the  market-place.  Fifty 
handsome  young  men  danced  and  sang 
a  hymn  of  thanksgiving  to   Dionysos. 

So  for  five  days  Athens  was  gay — 
songs,  dances,  plays,  processions,  laugh- 
ing crowds,  beautiful  clothes  all  the 
time.  And  all  this  happened  because 
long,  long  ago  Dionysos  had  taught  peo- 
ple how  to  grow  grapes,  how  to  make 
raisins  and  wine  and  to  have  banquets. 


f^^m^mmmsm^c^^^^^j^mm^^^^SS 


VOCABULARY  M 


-m>-- 


Achilles  (a  HI'  lez) 
Admetos  (ad  me'  tos) 
Agamemnon 

(ag  a  mem'  non) 
Ajax  (a'  jaks) 
Akropolis  (k  krop'  6  lis) 
Alkestis  (al  kes'  tis) 


Euripides  (u  rip'  1  dez) 
Eurystheus  (ii  ris'  thus) 
evoe  (e  vo'  e) 
greaves  (grevz) 
Hector  (hek'  tor) 
Hephsestos  (he  fes'  tos) 
Herakles  (her'  a  klez) 


Andromache  (an  drom'  a  ke)  Hermes  (her'  mez) 


Apollo  (a  pol'  16) 

Ariadne  (ar  1  ad'  ne) 

Athene  (a  the'  ne) 

bas-relief  (ba'  re  lef7) 
^Briseis  (bri  se'^ts) 
'Centaur  (sen'  tar) 
^Cheiron  (ki'  ron) 

chiton  (ki'  ton) 

chlamys  (kla'  mis) 
/'Chryseis  (kri  se'  is) 
Chryses  (kri'  sez) 

Cleomenes  (kle  6m'  $  nez) 

Cleon  (kle'  on) 

Delphi  (del'  fi) 

Diomedes  (di'  6  me'  dez) 

Dionysos  (di'  5  ni'  sos) 

Dry  as  (dri'  as) 

Eumelos  (u  me'  16s) 


himation  (hi  mat'  i  5n) 

hydra  (hi'  dra) 

Naxos  (nax'  os) 

nymph  (nimf) 

Nysa  (ni'  sa) 

Odysseus  (o  dls'  sus) 
/Olympia  (6  lim'pi  a) 
/Patroklos  (pa  tro'  kl6s) 
u  Peleus  (pe'  lus) 
/-Phoenix  (fe'niks) 
^-Priam  (pri'  am) 
<  Satyr  (sa'  ter) 

Silenos  (si  le'  n6s) 

Thespios  (thes'  pi  6s) 
/Thessaly  (thes'  a  li) 

Thetis  (the'  tis) 

Ulysses  (u  lis'  sez) 

Zeus  (zus) 


A   PRONOUNCING  GUIDE 


a  as  in  ale 

e  as  in  event 

o  as 

in  old 

S.  as  in  aim 

e  as  in  end 

6  as 

in  obey 

a  as  in  ask 

e  as  in  her 

6  as 

in  5dd 

a  as  in  arm 

i  as  tn  ice 

u  as 

tn  use 

a  as  in  all 

l  as  in  idea 

u  as 

in  up 

e  as  in  eve 

X  as  in  ill 
[arf] 

tl  as 

in  linite 

I  WISH  to  speak  first  of  these  stories  as  stories 
only.  I  hope  that  for  children  who  read  them 
they  will  set  up  ideals  of  action,  that  they  will 
help  to  begin  an  analysis  of  character,  that  they  will 
furnish  a  happy  time,  and  images  pleasant  to  recall. 
In  order  that  these  things  may  be  accomplished,  the 
characters  must  be  vivid.  Frequent,  free  discussion, 
wherein  the  children  make  and  express  their  own 
judgments  without  much  interference  from  grown 
people,  will  help  toward  this,  and  will,  besides,  begin 
the  habit  of  character  analysis.  Better  even  than 
this  discussion  for  bringing  about  a  clear  knowledge 
of  people  is  dramatization.  If  a  boy  has  once  played 
that  he  is  Herakles  he  has  established  a  secret  under- 
standing and  sympathy  with  Herakles  that  only  a 
close  personal  acquaintanceship  could  create. 

Let  me  say  a  word  in  favor  of  giving  the  correct 
setting  to  these  stories.  It  is  quite  possible  to  read 
and  to  understand  them  while  putting  the  people 
into  modern  surroundings.  But  it  seems  to  me  that 
we  shall  gain  something  by  the  other  course.  We 
are,  children  and  grown  people,  liable  to  the  fault  of 
thinking  that  our  way  of  doing  a  thing  is  the  only 
way.  A  knowledge  that  there  is  another  way  is  the 
first  step  toward  generosity  and  toleration.  Besides, 
power  to  understand  situations  not  present  to  the 
senses  and  to  construct  mental  material  into  new 
pictures  is  a  valuable  acquisition.  It  requires  much 
labor  to  build  up  the  correct  images,  but  the  chil- 
dren's delight  in  the  novelty  of  seeing  these  new 
things,  and  the  teacher's  own  pleasure  in  the  beauty 
of  Greeks  moving  in  their  proper  environment  will 
richly  repay  all  effort.  Pictures  and  models  will 
be  needed  constantly.  Pictures  are  the  more  beau- 
tiful and  the  more  easy  to  get  and  to  use,  but  they 


220  Four    Old   Greeks 

are  often  inadequate.  For  instance,  they  cannot 
tell  about  a  house.  Only  a  model  can  do  that  prop- 
erly. It  can  be  made  with  a  movable  roof,  so  that 
all  the  rooms  and  courts  can  be  seen  at  once.  Again, 
if  a  boy  be  dressed  in  cardboard  armor  covered 
with  silver  paper,  with  a  spear  in  his  hand  and  a 
shield  on  his  arm  and  a  sword  at  his  side,  he  will 
know  more  about  armor  and  warriors  than  a  whole 
art  gallery  could  tell  him.  For  the  understanding 
of  dress,  pretty,  inexpensive,  and  fairly  truthful 
costumes  can  be  made  of  cotton  crepe  or  of  cotton 
cashmere.  They  give  the  feeling,  the  folds,  and  the 
color  better  than  pictures  can  do.  But  there  are 
dangers  in  using  models.  They  are  imperfect.  The 
size  is  wrong,  or  the  material  is  wrong,  or  the  color 
is  wrong.  The  children  need  constantly  to  be  re- 
minded of  this  until  a  perfect  image  has  been  firmly 
established  by  the  combined  aid  of  models  and 
description. 

For  temples  and  statues,  pictures  and  casts  are 
the  only  things.  Let  the  schoolroom  be  rich  with 
them.  Where  it  is  possible,  use  art  galleries  fre- 
quently. I  have  seen  artistic  taste  grow  in  children 
during  the  year's  living  with  these  objects  of  art. 
If,  too,  the  pupils  themselves  produce,  under  the 
inspiration  of  these  fine  things,  they  will  gain  an 
artistic  skill.  Paint,  chalk,  clay,  and  plaster  seem  to 
me  the  only  materials  that  are  sufficiently  flexible 
for  the  children  to  construct  with  profitably  in  this 
connection. 

Many  other  stories  quite  as  well  as  the  Greek  will 
serve  as  character  studies  and  will  furnish  novel  set- 
ting. But  surely  no  other  people  with  stories  suffi- 
ciently simple  had  at  the  same  time  such  a  wealth 
of  beauty  to  illuminate  them.  It  is  this  richness  of 
artistic  connection  that  makes  Greek  stories  especi- 
ally valuable  for  little  children.  Why  should  we 
wait  until  we  are  nearly  grown  before  we  know 
Greek  art?    It  is  long  acquaintance  and  constant 


Suggestions   to  Teachers      221 

companionship  .that  breed  in  11s  love  of  beautiful 
things.  So  let  the  men  of  these  stories  introduce 
readers  to  the  beauties  of  Greek  art. 

I  hope,  then,  that  children  may  see  the  characters 
of  the  people  of  these  stories ;  may  see  the  people 
themselves  living  in  Greek  houses,  using  Greek  tools, 
wearing  Greek  clothes,  walking  Greek  streets,  play- 
ing Greek  games,  sailing  in  Greek  ships,  praying  in 
Greek  temples,  moving  among  Greek  statues ;  and 
may  so  grow  richer  in  knowledge  of  people  and  in 
beautiful  images. 

Jennie  Hall. 

Chicago  Normal  School \  July  20,  /go/. 


I A  BIBLIOGRAPHY 

HOMERIC    TIMES. 

"  Tiryns,"   Schliemann.        Charles    Scribner's 

Sons,  New  York $10  oo 

M  Mycenae,'*   Schliemann.      Charles    Scribnefs 

Sons,  New  York 7  50 

"  Troy  and  Its  Remains,"  Schliemann.     John 

Murray,  London 

"Ilios,"    Schliemann.       Harper    &    Brothers, 

New  York 7  50 

"Troja,"  Schliemann.      Harper  &  Brothers, 

New  York 5  00 

"  Schliemann 's     Excavations,"     Schuchhardt. 

The  Macmillan  Co.,  New  York  ....  4  00 
"  Homer,  An  Introduction  to  the  Iliad  and  the 

Odyssey,"  J  ebb.  Ginn  &  Co.,  Boston  .  .  1  12 
"Greeks  in  the  Time  of  Homer,"  Timayenis. 

D.  Appleton  &  Co.,  New  York 1  50 

"  The  Iliad,"  in  English  Prose,  Lang,  Leaf  & 

Myers.  The  Macmillan  Co.,  New  York  .  80 
"  The  Odyssey,"  in  English  Prose,  Butcher  & 

Lang.     The  Macmillan  Co.,  New  York  .     .        80 

LATER    CUSTOMS. 

"  Life  of  the  Greeks   and   Romans,"  Guhl  & 

Koner.     D.  Appleton,  New  York  ....     3  00 

"  Manual  of  Grecian  Antiquities,"  Gardner  & 
Jevons.  Charles  Scribner's  Sons,  New 
York 4  00 

"Aspasia,"  Hamerling.      Geo.    G.  Peck,   New 

York 1  25 

"Greek    Education,"    Mahaffy.       Harper    & 

Brothers,  New  York 75 


A  Bibliography  223 

"The  Home  Life  of  the  Ancient  Greeks," 
Bliimner,  translated  by  Zimmern.  Cassell 
&  Co.,  London       $  2  00 

ATHENS. 

"  Ancient  Athens,"  Dyer.  Bell  &  Daldy,  Lon- 
don   


"Pausanias'  Description  of  Greece,"   Frazer. 

TheMacmillan  Co.,  New  York.  6  vols.,  each    5  00 
"  Athens,"  Stuart  &  Revett.    Bohrts  Library, 

Bell  &  Sons,  London 1  50 


THE    THEATER. 

"Attic    Theater,"   Haigh.      Clarendon    Press, 

Oxford 3  00 

ART. 

"A  History  of  Ancient  Sculpture,"  Mitchell. 

Dodd,  Mead  &  Co.,  New  York.  2  vols.  .  750 
"  History  of  Architecture,"  Fergusson.    John 

Murray,  London.     2  vols 15  75 

"  Greek  Studies,"  Pater.     The  Macmillan  Co., 

New  York.     (Contains  essay  on  Dionysos)     1  75 

HISTORY. 

"  History  of  Greece,"  Curtius.     Charles  Scrib- 

ner's  Sons,  New  York 10  00 

ALKESTIS. 

Translation  (paper).    Maynard,  Merrill  &  Co., 

New  York 12 

"  Balaustion's  Adventure,"  Browning's  Com- 
plete Works.  Houghton,  Mifflin  &  Co., 
Boston 1  50 

MYTHOLOGY. 

"Bulfinch's  Mythology,  The  Age  of  Fable." 

Lee  &  Shepard,  Boston      .    .     .     .     .     .     .     1  50 


224  Four  Old  Greeks 

PICTURES. 

"  Bilder  aus  dem  Griechischen  und  Romischen 
Altertum  fiir  Schiiler,"  Baumeister.  Olden- 
hourz,  Miinchen,  Germany $200 

Foreign  Photographs.  Agency,  1J5  Wabash 
Ave.,  Chicago. 

Perry  Pictures,  1  cent  half-tones.  The  Perry 
Picture  Co.,  Maiden,  Mass. 

Francis  Hendricks  &  Co.,  1  cent  blue  prints. 
Francis  Hendricks  &  Co.,  Syracuse,  N.  Y. 

Art  Study  Pictures,  1  cent  half-tones.  Art 
Study  Picture  Co.,  Chicago. 


RETURN  TO  the  circulation  desk  ot  any 
University  of  California  Library 
or  to  the 
NORTHERN  REGIONAL  LIBRARY  FACILITY 
Bldg.  400,  Richmond  Field  Station 
University  of  California 
Richmond,  CA  94804-4698 

ALL  BOOKS  MAY  BE  RECALLED  AFTER  7  DAYS 

•  2-month  loans  may  be  renewed  by  calling 
(510)642-6753 

•  1-year  loans  may  be  recharged  by  bringing 
books  to  NRLF 

•  Renewals  and  recharges  may  be  made  4 
days  prior  to  due  date. 

DUE  AS  STAMPED  BELOW 


jjjg  1 1  1907 


12,000(11/95) 


YB  22419 


/ 


c 


41.7175 

H3 

UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  LIBRARY 


